tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13183285460087374032017-12-10T19:08:03.248-08:00Shaneela Rowah Al-QamarThis is the dedicated blog, of a Fragrance Connoisseur and Writer, Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamar. Its the BEST place to read about and learn about Arabian, Oriental or Oud based fragrances, perfume niches, Attar - and fragrances in general! Enjoy! :)Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarnoreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-79386978826028510292017-04-11T07:39:00.003-07:002017-04-11T07:39:38.632-07:00Jewels of Scent Salim - The Arabian Fragrance Powerhouse of The North!<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Dirty, rotten cow dung.&nbsp; But it smells good – too good!&nbsp; Yes, here I am again talking about oud – and the one type of oud that would fit within this olfactory description, is the oud of the Indian variety – the jewelled earth of Assam.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">This is by <a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/" target="_blank">Scent Salim</a>, a UK based Fine Arabian fragrance boutique.&nbsp; Scent Salim has been the first port of call for celebrities and northerners (the north of the UK) for many years, building a unique heritage of Yorkshire based Arabian Fine Fragrances!&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mM0S4tLbpBc/WOzHUzgU3jI/AAAAAAAAAII/GZLsRlR7SbU6R7LVC1gk-RxTEumCqeJXwCLcB/s1600/IMG_20170411_125931235_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mM0S4tLbpBc/WOzHUzgU3jI/AAAAAAAAAII/GZLsRlR7SbU6R7LVC1gk-RxTEumCqeJXwCLcB/s320/IMG_20170411_125931235_HDR.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Going back to this gem of an <a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/product/ajmal-amber-oud-3ml/" target="_blank">Assam oud</a>, this is precious, it is a sharp ambery scent and is very heavily punctuated by barnyad cow dung, or even cow dung that is burning… is that even possible?&nbsp; I am reminded of ancient tales from the Middle East and beyond where rural people would burn dry animal feces for fuel and this is what I get on opening and this, my friends, is the signature element of Indian oud!&nbsp; It is this olfactory description of a scent within fragrances and perfumery that Arabian consumers crave for in their oud concoctions, much more popular than the oud Cambodi variety.&nbsp; The heart notes of this wonderful oud is the pronouncement of the honey-like ambery notes coming through, but very very slowly… the climax of the burning cow dung is coming to an end to make way for the royalty, which amber is.&nbsp; This isn’t like other Assam ouds that I have smelled, which usually have olfactory descriptions of <i>church </i>due to the perceived notes of frankincense and myrrh.&nbsp; No, none of that.&nbsp; Not yet, anyway.&nbsp; The strong amber note is here for good, but maybe with a tad of salt?&nbsp; I think I detect some salt!&nbsp; <a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/" target="_blank">Scent Salim’s</a> signature Oud is a strong performer with excellent sillage, bringing me ever so slight notes of saffron dancing in the air towards me, and was that cardamom too?&nbsp; This oud, I would say is a perfumers prayers answered – it is dying for more attention, dying to be seen and God damnit, it will be seen!&nbsp; And smelled! This, by far is one of the best Oud’s that I have come across!&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="clear: left; color: #d5a6bd; float: left; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tw-5s4LPWXE/WOzHxl3eCYI/AAAAAAAAAIQ/K_igTvpE9H4LUaWW3P80HUJMK9JG_U_lQCLcB/s320/IMG_20170411_130444446_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></span><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/" target="_blank">Scent Salim’s</a> collection of Attars and oud’s have turned heads and got people talking, those who appreciate good Arabian fragrances and attars.&nbsp; Their collection not only consists of signature scents, but a niche line as well as bakhoor – so important in the Arabian tradition of hospitality.&nbsp; They even carry an<a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/product/80-years-aged-kalakassi-oud-3ml/" target="_blank"> 80 year old Kalakassi oud,</a>By the esteemed Middle Eastern based brand, Abdul Samad al Qureshi!&nbsp; Scent Salim’s Leeds store is a celebration of Arabian traditions and heritage, with a vast collection to suit all budgets and tastes… leading me onto talk about my next favourite from their wonderful collection.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">And I am in heaven.&nbsp; <a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/product/taif-rose-3ml/" target="_blank">Rose Des Reves</a> opens up with a sparkling clean white musk and rose.&nbsp; The rose is subtle but enough to be noticed.&nbsp; Like the shy bride on her wedding night, she makes the occasional appearance pulling away the musk laden fabric of her pure white laced veil, covering her face.&nbsp; On my skin, I detect no oud, but I am secretly thankful for it.&nbsp; This does not need oud.&nbsp; The wonderfully fresh and occasional lemony citrus notes of the Taif rose comes through, reminding me of a wonderful summers morning of bright sunlight piercing into my eyes, but as soon as it hits the innocent bride of the white veil, the musk makes an appearance to protect her.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; This scent sparkles, almost like the sparkling of the remnants of rain water which caress the thick grass of the meadow and the unrepentant sun that glows above it.&nbsp; Even at dry down, this continues to deliver with excellent longevity and sillage – a perfect pick for the coming summer!&nbsp; An exquisite blend, created by Salim himself! &nbsp; &nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="clear: right; color: #d5a6bd; float: right; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NBVCbAn1CbA/WOzHkoLMDyI/AAAAAAAAAIM/lnmI4nI_5PAS0DykNMFwETKr4fOqFN-BwCLcB/s320/IMG_20170411_130242495_HDR.jpg" width="262" /></span><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/" target="_blank">Scent Salim’s</a> artisan blends are treasures for those who love Arabian and oud based perfumery alike… a powerhouse of oud for the north of England, it is not surprising, that their unique scents are so popular with leading celebrities!&nbsp; And their heritage collection is nothing short of unique gems – another one of them being <a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/product/the-royal-blend-3ml/" target="_blank">Royal Blend</a>&nbsp;– what can I say?&nbsp; This scent takes me to Asia!&nbsp; The wonderful sandalwood opening heavy punctuated with the beautiful Indian incense – possibly camphor incense, perhaps?&nbsp; I also get the oud in the background and a powerhouse of a sweet note – mind bogglingly powerful, with the monstrous sillage!&nbsp; If this does not turn heads, then honestly I do not know what will!&nbsp; Salim has really hit it with this one – to me a perfectly Indian Attar, of excellent quality.&nbsp; The longevity of the scent was such, that even the next day, the sandalwood and rose sweetness was not looking to slow down at all!&nbsp; I am a complete sucker for sandalwood and rose and with this scent, I can imagine sitting in the middle of a Mysore sandalwood forest retreat! Ha!&nbsp; That’s how good it is!&nbsp; This is the scent for the hippies… I get an olfactory description of Goa hippies, who have travelled from western Europe, seeking refuge and solace at one of the many hare rama sanctuaries or something!?!&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">It brings me back to those college days, when hippy Surrey guys and gals were planning their trips to Goa at the end of the semester and those hare rama Krishma devotees would love this!! And so they should.&nbsp; For me, this is India in a bottle.&nbsp; Can it get any better than that?&nbsp; Scent Salim created this fragrance himself… and what a scent it is! <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Check out <a href="http://www.scentsalim.com/" target="_blank">Scent Salim</a> Here, and get your hands on some fragrant gems! &nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/101328394162581772431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-59368899238171255002017-04-03T07:57:00.000-07:002017-04-05T17:07:04.275-07:00Esxense Milano 2017: My Fragrant Picks<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2BK-w4KloC8/WOJcdpBe-hI/AAAAAAAAAHc/s3EaHLLaTTIg2y6fjHs66_tIce8Op1nbACLcB/s1600/IMG_20170403_151955.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2BK-w4KloC8/WOJcdpBe-hI/AAAAAAAAAHc/s3EaHLLaTTIg2y6fjHs66_tIce8Op1nbACLcB/s320/IMG_20170403_151955.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Esxense Fragrance Exhibition, Milano</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Where do I start?!?!&nbsp; I am still suffering from the aftermath of the wonderful Esxence exhibition, which took place in Milano, Italy between 23rd - 26th March 2017.&nbsp; And what a wonderful place it is!&nbsp; The exhibition was framed within the beautiful backdrop of a wonderful city – beautiful people, beautiful minds, beautiful souls… all these essences were brought together in this fantastic event, bringing together fragrance aficionados and fanatics like myself!&nbsp; &nbsp;And what a wonderful get together it was.&nbsp; My mission was to find the latest and the most intriguing oud scents on the market… or about to come onto the market, should I say!&nbsp; I wasn’t disappointed!&nbsp; In fact, I was so mesmerised by the offerings of the various niche brands and their scents, that I almost forgot about the oud!&nbsp; Blasphemy, I hear you scream!!&nbsp; Hahaha!&nbsp; Well, what can one say, when surrounded by such wonderful creations under one roof – paying homage to not only oud based fragrances, but other kind of fragrances too…the utter choice of sophisticated blends and excitement was quite overwhelming, to say the least!&nbsp; My only regret was not having much sleep before and during the trip! &nbsp;Ha!&nbsp; Well, I had an array of scents to allow me to daydream at least 😉<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W5EH7VW-GVg/WOJc0vUOXyI/AAAAAAAAAHo/_SjKmXe-vOwzrfOYXou8uutlyVp0pUu3ACLcB/s1600/IMG_20170324_104928273_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W5EH7VW-GVg/WOJc0vUOXyI/AAAAAAAAAHo/_SjKmXe-vOwzrfOYXou8uutlyVp0pUu3ACLcB/s200/IMG_20170324_104928273_HDR.jpg" width="150" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Myself with&nbsp;Paolo Terenzi</span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">&nbsp;</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CMfXtBjkhG8/WOJczn76-8I/AAAAAAAAAHg/Rp3BtvAuu3YFo38LxwcAqYfyYLd9Qr0UACLcB/s1600/IMG_20170324_105110156_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CMfXtBjkhG8/WOJczn76-8I/AAAAAAAAAHg/Rp3BtvAuu3YFo38LxwcAqYfyYLd9Qr0UACLcB/s200/IMG_20170324_105110156_HDR.jpg" width="150" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Myself with Tiziana Terenzi</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Now there are many scents that I picked up from the show, which I wish I could talk about. &nbsp;The airport security staff at Milan Airport were bemused with the amount of liquids I had in my hand luggage on return, all measuring below 100ml, as per their requirements.&nbsp; But although there was a <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BNQlHv8e_ok/WOJcz4w57DI/AAAAAAAAAHk/ZBegaTxM5qYvD5mgTTtLGnRH7JFFQJkagCEw/s1600/IMG_20170324_115730773_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BNQlHv8e_ok/WOJcz4w57DI/AAAAAAAAAHk/ZBegaTxM5qYvD5mgTTtLGnRH7JFFQJkagCEw/s200/IMG_20170324_115730773_HDR.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-size: x-small;">Myself with Asim Al Qassim, of Anfas Perfumes, UAE</span></td></tr></tbody></table>limit to how many of these I was allowed to carry, I think it would be safe to say that my pleading eyes, and to their minds, a seemingly bizzare passion for fragrance had allowed them to overlook the billion and one perfume samples in my hand luggage!&nbsp; God forbid that I check them in, and they got lost!&nbsp; I had to have them with me, for Gods sakes!&nbsp; Hahaha!<o:p></o:p></span></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UnEfP-ENNF4/WOJd4hEJHyI/AAAAAAAAAHw/oWQMG8F_Qo0jyGhR1pTHIRSar1WS3rxgwCEw/s1600/IMG_20170403_151654.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UnEfP-ENNF4/WOJd4hEJHyI/AAAAAAAAAHw/oWQMG8F_Qo0jyGhR1pTHIRSar1WS3rxgwCEw/s200/IMG_20170403_151654.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://12parfumeurs.com/" target="_blank">12 Parfumeurs Francais</a>, a Paris based fragrance house, kindly gave me the opportunity to sample one of their scents, Chambord. It’s a typically citrusy and very fresh spicy scent – with a wonderfully musky dry down… a perfect light summery day scent! Along with this, I received their other fragrance, Fontainebleau which more woody and a tad heavier, but with a wonderful citrus opening which is perfect for the spring and summer too. Their fragrances are packed in beautifully velvet lined boxes… a beautiful representation of the history of the house. They are called ’12 Parfumeurs’, because of the coming together of 12 perfumers, to create their magic in the form of scent and I must say, their scents really do reflect of French heritage and culture – and of course naturally, their boutique is located in the epi-centre of Paris, Avenue Des Champs-Elysees. My next fragrance I spotted at Esxense, which I have to talk about</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pb4UkP7RkN4/WOJdunEMcRI/AAAAAAAAAHs/Zei6b8vJ-98hvls8ETfCH-0FcbSvl4V_wCEw/s1600/IMG_20170403_151625.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pb4UkP7RkN4/WOJdunEMcRI/AAAAAAAAAHs/Zei6b8vJ-98hvls8ETfCH-0FcbSvl4V_wCEw/s200/IMG_20170403_151625.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"> about, was <a href="http://www.blendoud.com/index.php/en/" target="_blank">Blend Oud </a>– a local Milano based boutique &nbsp;and niche brand.&nbsp; What can I say?&nbsp; I was stunned.&nbsp; The quality of the fragrances were literally out of this world – and one I tried there, Eclipse, has had me smelling the sample card, a good week after the event!&nbsp; The dry down is absolutely phenomenal, and I can certainly see myself with this sample card firmly attached to my nose for the long term, if I do not grab myself a bottle soon!!&nbsp; The base notes consist of oud, birch, cinnamon, oakmoss, patchouli, saffron, sandalwood, ambergris, civet, musk and orris root.&nbsp; Wow!!&nbsp; Just wow!&nbsp; All my favourite notes in a bottle, but that’s just the base notes!!&nbsp; We have also got the beautiful ylang-ylang, bergamot, lemons and lime… jasmines and rose.&nbsp; This fragrance literally has my name on it!!&nbsp; If heaven smelled like anything, it would be near enough to this <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">😉</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">So next time your in Milano and fancy yourself an oud treat… pop along to their boutique!</span></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-72TfQB2PbQo/WOJePg3bEsI/AAAAAAAAAH0/6iaVPgibcngAmJIkpPa5GB9VI1jDx6gwwCEw/s1600/IMG_20170403_151417638_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-72TfQB2PbQo/WOJePg3bEsI/AAAAAAAAAH0/6iaVPgibcngAmJIkpPa5GB9VI1jDx6gwwCEw/s320/IMG_20170403_151417638_HDR.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /><br />The next fragrance, which I had the complete pleasure of sampling, also, was Embers, by <a href="https://en.rougebunnyrouge.com/" target="_blank">Rouge Bunny Rouge</a>, a UK based brand… It’s a wonderful woody scent, but very light, with a smattering of incense I think thrown in there. This could work as a good beginner’s fragrance into heavy woodsy scents and although this isn’t heavy at all, it’s good as an intro for those intro florals and citrus fragrances. The Jasmine and labdanum are discreet and quite playful and overall, this scent gives me the olfactory sense of camping!!! A beautiful scent worth trying!<br /><br /><br />Well, that was a summary of some wonderful fragrances I sampled from Exsense… and if you are after more wonderful pictures, then worry not, because I have a dedicated <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1654814554545650.1073741829.100000513643972&amp;type=1&amp;l=25b25eda1e" target="_blank">Facebook album</a> of all my favourites from the show. But until next time, happy sniffing!! 😊 <br /><br /> </span><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody><tr><td><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /><br /> <br /><br /> </span></td></tr></tbody></table>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/101328394162581772431noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-83539531435797315782017-03-21T17:58:00.000-07:002017-03-21T17:58:30.760-07:00Its National Fragrance Day! And Here Are Some Fragranced Words...And A Treat!<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Happy National Fragrance Day!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Well!&nbsp; I hope that you all took today as an opportunity to sniff out new scents, because I certainly did!&nbsp; I wanted to check out some of the exclusives available in London, and there are many exclusives that have been released to Harrods and Selfridges.&nbsp; Today, I am going to discuss my favourites!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kBTz2wK216A/WNHGfp2yBII/AAAAAAAAAGw/hAYPIdUqxwYHooG8pIPl7IKM762ZS3RrQCLcB/s1600/IMG_20170320_170430162_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kBTz2wK216A/WNHGfp2yBII/AAAAAAAAAGw/hAYPIdUqxwYHooG8pIPl7IKM762ZS3RrQCLcB/s320/IMG_20170320_170430162_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Until last week, Penhaligon’s had a temporary pop up in Harrods, featuring many new exclusives that are not even advertised on their website yet!&nbsp; Two of these were <i>Sohan </i>and <i>Yasmine.&nbsp; </i>Both were utterly beautiful woody, dreamy, boozy scents. &nbsp;My favourite out of the two and the one that stood out the most, was Yasmine.&nbsp; What can I say?&nbsp; Jasmine.&nbsp; That wonderful Jasmine absolute really teases the notes of Bulgarian Rose, Oud, Coffee and Vanilla.&nbsp; The oud, coffee and vanilla meld into this amazingly deep sweet but not too sweet dry down, kind of like the smell of a vanilla flavoured cake steaming hot out of an oven, but with much more depth and </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ZcFwm38hiw/WNHGXfomoNI/AAAAAAAAAG0/jW2msk_ACQQiQ-1CGZP22Ji6FEum7xf8ACEw/s1600/IMG_20170311_172219005_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ZcFwm38hiw/WNHGXfomoNI/AAAAAAAAAG0/jW2msk_ACQQiQ-1CGZP22Ji6FEum7xf8ACEw/s320/IMG_20170311_172219005_HDR.jpg" width="148" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">booziness.&nbsp; It is to die for!&nbsp; This scent of course is full on gourmand, especially if you place the rose note into the gourmand category.&nbsp; The coffee is not so apparent, but without it, the scent wouldn’t have had as much depth.&nbsp; It performs to the strength required, like notes in a musical tune, whilst the others sing their song.&nbsp; This is a perfume done well, created well, with the dry down being almost ambery-creamy like.&nbsp; It can take so many angles!&nbsp; Unfortunately, the Harrods pop-up has ended – so keep your eyes peeled on Penhaligon’s website for more details!<o:p></o:p></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-G_o0Er7CN8s/WNHHVA0Xi9I/AAAAAAAAAHA/dou3Tv5Ao4goQ8bEyeEqNt9BF_tnbjQYACEw/s1600/IMG_20170321_151651716.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-G_o0Er7CN8s/WNHHVA0Xi9I/AAAAAAAAAHA/dou3Tv5Ao4goQ8bEyeEqNt9BF_tnbjQYACEw/s320/IMG_20170321_151651716.jpg" width="180" /></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Now moving onto my recent find.&nbsp; Found today, in fact.&nbsp; In celebration of National Fragrance Day, I wanted to check out the Selfridges exclusives.&nbsp; Quite a few niche houses have placed their exclusives, over the last few weeks into Selfridges, but one that stood out for me, was Prada’s latest oud scent.&nbsp; Now, yes – it’s a typically western fashion house that has also jumped onto the oud bandwagon, but it’s an oud well done!&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;The barnyard bitterness opening of the oud and the clashes of it with the deep leathery notes are absolutely phenomenal!&nbsp; I was literally taken a back, it was sour-bitter and sharp, barnyard oud with the deep leather really create a beautiful blend together, both literally fighting for the attention of your senses.&nbsp; I felt like the leather wanted to out-do the oud and vice versa.&nbsp; Well, I had to let them calm down a bit.&nbsp; This is the fragrance that you smell on someone else, but when I say someone else, I do not mean anyone.&nbsp; It’s that one unique person from whom you smell a scent that you have never smelled before, and you want it so bad but you cannot get it or don’t know what it is.&nbsp; It is some obscure thing from another world.&nbsp; It is that fragrance which creates memories and it is that fragrance which creates deep associations with the person wearing it.&nbsp; It cries out for you to take it on and make it a part of your identity.&nbsp; It wants to have that special place with you – and boy did it get it!&nbsp; The heart notes of this fragrance, was the beautiful marriage of the now slightly weakening oud and leather notes, being married together with the rose, creating that boozy effect again, that lingering ambery depth that we see a lot, but the dry down is this almost smoky rose, tinted with the surrendered leather note, which has taken a back seat from the oud, and taking notice of the rose.&nbsp; The oud is still there in the background, but it’s also weakened and has settled down within this 3-way marriage with the rose, blending into one.&nbsp; Its indescribable.&nbsp; When it comes to taming the loud oud and leather notes, it truly is a miracle if that happens and the rose certainly did its job well in taming them.&nbsp; Not surprising, that it’s called The Miracle of The Rose...This is a must have in any oud collection!&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GBekd7OqxZE/WNHKFhZnZTI/AAAAAAAAAHI/WTk2I1THn2Qa_cg_SQvB4Hp7y3FWB3yuQCLcB/s1600/IMG_20170201_034144184.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GBekd7OqxZE/WNHKFhZnZTI/AAAAAAAAAHI/WTk2I1THn2Qa_cg_SQvB4Hp7y3FWB3yuQCLcB/s320/IMG_20170201_034144184.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Now, before I sign off, here's a treat! To celebrate National Fragrance Day, <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Scented Souq</a> is giving YOU 10% off your next order, but you will have to hurry, because the offer ends this Friday 24<sup>th</sup> March 2017!&nbsp; So, pop over to the website now, to grab your spring scent for the season!!&nbsp; My favourites for this spring are <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/products/chenille-lotus?variant=34249655428" target="_blank">Chenille Lotus</a> and <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/products/lail-al-iskandriya?variant=34249655684" target="_blank">Lail Al-Iskandriya</a>!&nbsp; Both are beautiful introductions to the summer season just around the corner!&nbsp; To take advantage of the 10% off, be sure to enter promo code: NATIONALSCENT at the checkout!!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Until Next time, happy sniffing!&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><o:p></o:p></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/101328394162581772431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-38908025625173485202017-03-12T09:00:00.001-07:002017-03-12T09:00:22.664-07:00New London Fragrance Boutique - The Spirit of Dubai, By the House of Nabeel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M2_Ee6juZv4/WMVui-cSJnI/AAAAAAAAAGI/L-JJaxv0ApU4mx7b009u-zERw3x7uIwPQCEw/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M2_Ee6juZv4/WMVui-cSJnI/AAAAAAAAAGI/L-JJaxv0ApU4mx7b009u-zERw3x7uIwPQCEw/s320/2.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The 2<sup>nd</sup> March 2017 marked a great development in the Arabian fragrance world!&nbsp; Knightsbridge, London – arguably the retail and luxury heart and centre of Europe - had welcomed amongst its midst, a brand new fine fragrance boutique, ‘The Spirit of Dubai’.&nbsp; This is a line created by the UAE based house of Nabeel perfumes, a house known for their excellent quality fragrances.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cxIj4V9wfSA/WMVuyKHE7bI/AAAAAAAAAGM/YZHIkFqfWmsqY7511t9Ij2IelBfCoDSQwCLcB/s1600/6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cxIj4V9wfSA/WMVuyKHE7bI/AAAAAAAAAGM/YZHIkFqfWmsqY7511t9Ij2IelBfCoDSQwCLcB/s320/6.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have had a long love and association with this house, and their Spirit of Dubai collection is absolutely one that raises eyebrows!&nbsp; On visiting their boutique, I of course spent lots of time trying their whole wonderful range.&nbsp; I am not new to The Spirit of Dubai – I have been introduced to them in the past via their counter in the exclusive Salon de Parfum, located in Harrods and in Dubai itself.&nbsp; The London boutique is located directly opposite the world-renowned Harrods.&nbsp; One of their fragrances, which I had to get on my skin, today though, was Meydan.&nbsp; The opening was actually very light and breezy, before drying down to the beautiful </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e8xPuqheh7A/WMVwEmmIxII/AAAAAAAAAGY/jReT2Jpww5oyvlMvlQWUVrlQevY80d9HwCLcB/s1600/17201268_1639553016071804_1591290182890699422_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e8xPuqheh7A/WMVwEmmIxII/AAAAAAAAAGY/jReT2Jpww5oyvlMvlQWUVrlQevY80d9HwCLcB/s320/17201268_1639553016071804_1591290182890699422_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">concoction of a melody of spices with the sandalwood screaming for attention in the background! The cardamoms and Nutmegs, along with the cinnamons had performed beautifully and also what to me smelled like cloves, were really having a party on my wrist!&nbsp; It’s a very unique scent… the sillage caught my attention every now and again, making me feel as special as I felt as if wrapped inside a spice infused pashmina, making it last longer and longer.&nbsp; It had that effect on me.&nbsp; It fits into the scene of cosmopolitan Dubai beautifully – with the freshness of it combined with the spicy mix, almost like the clash<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xBnPTlYnjBo/WMVwLis4pxI/AAAAAAAAAGc/cs2rzSY4RAAQZGtucKgjKEd7_rQe5TUlgCLcB/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xBnPTlYnjBo/WMVwLis4pxI/AAAAAAAAAGc/cs2rzSY4RAAQZGtucKgjKEd7_rQe5TUlgCLcB/s320/1.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>of civilisations that politicians speak of – except that here, it is done beautifully and with acceptance.&nbsp; The identity of Dubai really comes through with this wonderful fragrance…and really wants to make you jump onto the next Emirates flight – Dubai bound!<o:p></o:p></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Enjoy, and Happy Sniffing!&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</span><o:p></o:p></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/101328394162581772431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-83473042414979695102017-02-23T04:03:00.000-08:002017-02-23T04:03:09.038-08:00My Niche Attars: The Scented Souq<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Back with a BANG!&nbsp; Yes a HUGE bang. Been very busy with <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Scented Souq’s</a> new range of fragrances…. Which I must say are fantastic, but not only that, those who have tried them think so too!&nbsp; We have had some fantastic reviews from those who have tried my own small range of selected fragrances, which I will discuss.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EC_kaIYoUC0/WK7OzAHxmDI/AAAAAAAAAF0/3QHAptpIPXcPQv6GIz75bW87YnV_rF2qQCEw/s1600/20170201_003622.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EC_kaIYoUC0/WK7OzAHxmDI/AAAAAAAAAF0/3QHAptpIPXcPQv6GIz75bW87YnV_rF2qQCEw/s320/20170201_003622.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />My own blend of fragrances, which are exclusively only available at <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Scented Souq</a>, is a small line of niche Attars – geared towards different tastes.&nbsp; There is the one that is very traditional and <i>very </i>Arabian and then there is the spicy fragrance, which is great for those who have a mid-range palette, when it comes to spicy scents and then we have rose.&nbsp; Yes, the beloved Rose!&nbsp; <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/collections/mukhallat/products/niche-hand-blended-fragrance-oil-the-rose-garden?variant=34249652100" target="_blank">The Rose Garden</a> has had some fantastic reviews, with people commenting on its potency and excellent longevity.&nbsp; The idea behind <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/collections/mukhallat/products/niche-hand-blended-fragrance-oil-the-rose-garden?variant=34249652100" target="_blank">The Rose Garden</a>, was to simply create the feeling of nostalgia, going back to the roots of the dear rose, and bringing out its best qualities and what we all know to be <i>the </i>rose scent.&nbsp; This scent has been described by some to be so potent, that the fragrance fills the room with roses… now there is no better compliment than that, is there?&nbsp; Wink, wink!&nbsp; And then we come to <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/collections/mukhallat/products/niche-hand-blended-fragrance-oil-paradise?variant=34249652548" target="_blank">Paradise</a>, </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0uPupdyracc/WK7OuSwh0LI/AAAAAAAAAFs/eSu89NsnW3YptBPrkqBJmczfJshTnwshwCEw/s1600/20170201_005949.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0uPupdyracc/WK7OuSwh0LI/AAAAAAAAAFs/eSu89NsnW3YptBPrkqBJmczfJshTnwshwCEw/s320/20170201_005949.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">which was formally called The Scent of Heaven.&nbsp; The reason for the change in the name, is because I am currently working on a different line of niche Arabian oils… and that name fits in with the theme of the new range.&nbsp; But that’s all I can say for now!!!&nbsp; So do expect to see The Scent of Heaven back again, but of course it will be a totally different fragrance.&nbsp; More information on that exciting project will be released, when available! ;)&nbsp; returning to <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/collections/mukhallat/products/niche-hand-blended-fragrance-oil-paradise?variant=34249652548" target="_blank">Paradise</a>, this scent, I admit will not be for everyone.&nbsp; It is literally the scent that is reminiscent of ancient Arabia.&nbsp; It is heavy, it is deep, it is nostalgic… if you let it be so.&nbsp; This scent represents the <i>real </i>Attar… the wonderful blend of traditional Arabian Attar fragrance oils, to include musks, sandalwoods, ambers, dark musks, aged oud, saffrons and of course, Taif rose.&nbsp; It is ancient, traditional Arabia in a bottle.&nbsp; The heaviness and potency can be overwhelming for some…. But give it time!&nbsp; The sweetness of it comes through and WOW!&nbsp; What a wonderful sweetness it is, even if I do say so myself!<o:p></o:p></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9i2QY_sP0xo/WK7OyppwZxI/AAAAAAAAAFw/kS4_eWZQj9Ym8CQEgL49JK5VE1GqUKhCQCEw/s1600/20170201_005346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9i2QY_sP0xo/WK7OyppwZxI/AAAAAAAAAFw/kS4_eWZQj9Ym8CQEgL49JK5VE1GqUKhCQCEw/s320/20170201_005346.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Coming to <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/collections/mukhallat/products/niche-blended-fragrance-oil-the-sahara?variant=34249652292" target="_blank">The Sahara</a>, I have had some wonderful comments on it, appealing to those familiar with oud based scents and those who are not.&nbsp; Every single time it was sampled it had nothing but rave reviews!&nbsp; It’s a wonderful blend of spices, florals and earthy/woody notes… it truly is reminiscent of the Arabian desert!&nbsp; Each note in this fragrance is pronounced and very potent, created to give excellent longevity, and certainly something unique.&nbsp; Why not try one of these blends for yourself? Click here to see the range, available via <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Scented Souq,</a> and make sure you use promo code SCENTTEN to get 10% off, at the checkout!&nbsp; International shipping is available! &nbsp;But HURRY, because these offers will only be around for a limited amount of time!&nbsp; But before I wind down, another piece of wonderful news that I would like to share with you all, is that not only is <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Scented Souq’s</a> new great range of fragrances listed on Fragrantica’s wonderfully resourceful database of fragrances, <a href="http://www.fragrantica.com/designers/The-Scented-Souq.html" target="_blank">here</a>, but so are my own niche blends!&nbsp; Although the listings’ photography needs updating, you can find the listing for my blends <a href="http://www.fragrantica.com/noses/Shaneela_Rowah_Al-Qamar.html" target="_blank">here</a>.&nbsp; They are also listed on the renowned Basenotes fragrance database too! &nbsp;Great news, right?!&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Please do enjoy these scents, and until next time, happy sniffing! &nbsp;&nbsp;</span><o:p></o:p></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/101328394162581772431noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-22753161326242458242017-02-12T07:12:00.000-08:002017-02-12T07:18:56.070-08:00Fancy Some Hashish? The Scented Souq - A Brand New Affordable Luxury Arabian Attar Fragrance Line<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RPvP9W8zlxI/WKB2zKtg_YI/AAAAAAAAAFE/xfzppsF_cmgCs7SRkI2XNgtNg-ynlckqwCLcB/s1600/14543831_1412262232125222_1236757205471612543_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RPvP9W8zlxI/WKB2zKtg_YI/AAAAAAAAAFE/xfzppsF_cmgCs7SRkI2XNgtNg-ynlckqwCLcB/s200/14543831_1412262232125222_1236757205471612543_o.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Well, well! &nbsp;It’s been a long and hard start to this new year!&nbsp; I have been absent from my Blog since the New Year’s period… BUT!&nbsp; All is good!&nbsp; I have been very busy, working with The Scented Souq, and their brand new fragrance line and website – which I must say is VERY exciting indeed!&nbsp; I helped to design the fragrances and of course, my own niche blended fragrances which include Paradise (formally known as The Scent of Heaven), The Sahara and The Rose Garden are all available under the Niche Attars section of The Scented Souq revamped website.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">But what about the rest of the line?&nbsp; Well, first and foremost, the aim of this line was to create attars that are not only in line with Arabian tradition, but also on par with the many niche fragrances of the big designer houses.&nbsp; The aim is to offer affordable luxury fragrances.&nbsp; You can expect the same quality and type of composition that you would expect from a £500.00 bottle of perfume, for better value.&nbsp; So far, the best sellers have been <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/products/kashgar-silk" target="_blank">Kashgar Silk</a>, <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/products/attar-of-shahrazad" target="_blank">Attar of Shahrazad</a> and <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/products/khyber-hashish" target="_blank">Khyber Hashish</a>… these are all wonderfully unique blends that encapsulate eastern culture, myths and legends into a bottle.&nbsp; They are fragrances that really will take you to those places where those stories are told.&nbsp; Khyber Hashish Has so far got top comments and remarks from those who have sampled… the wonderful marriage of green and earthy notes with the sweetish oud, and the notes of cannabis of course make this one utterly addictive!! &nbsp;No surprise, is it?!&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yu9iHv26W5A/WKB3ETAsYgI/AAAAAAAAAFU/wOnqL9yTsnoGYcvbb1PZlnaXlpXbMsVmACEw/s1600/IMG_20170131_185025095_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yu9iHv26W5A/WKB3ETAsYgI/AAAAAAAAAFU/wOnqL9yTsnoGYcvbb1PZlnaXlpXbMsVmACEw/s320/IMG_20170131_185025095_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Attar of Shahrazad refers back to the solid Arabian </span><br /><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">legends of the <a href="http://amzn.to/2lDcpcl" target="_blank">1001&nbsp;</a></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://amzn.to/2lDcpcl" target="_blank">Nights</a>, with the fragrance capturing the essence of Shahrazad – the wife of the Sultan who tells him nightly stories in order to save her life and escape his sword to her head the following morning.&nbsp;&nbsp; Claiming back the position at the helm from the likes of Disney, The Attar of Shahrazad’s stories and legends gives us an authentic interpretation of the kind of oudy-rose, which filled the Persian air.&nbsp; Khyber Hashish and Kashgar Silk, bring to life the rugged terrains of central Asia and in particular the ancient silk road routes, where the historical oasis city thrived in the trade of silks and other high-value commodities, including fragrance.&nbsp; Kashgar Silk takes you back to the time where the air of central Asia, the Middle East and the Levant were punctuated by notes of precious oriental spices and frankincense, after the arrival of a hump load of camel from other parts of the orient!&nbsp; Its smells like what you would expect the ancient air of China to smell like.&nbsp; Khyber Hashish brings you forward in time and into the tribal Pashtun areas of the Khyber frontier regions – lawless rugged mountains, where your only solace is a of a cup of freshly brewed Pashtun green tea, and maybe a sneaky joint.&nbsp; Except there is nothing sneaky about the hashish in this fragrance, or in the lawless land. &nbsp;</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The fragrance demonstrates the warrior strength of the Pashtun men, a fierce temperament, but with a<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UBROH5XLD38/WKB5PCu0KXI/AAAAAAAAAFY/kzDppOsdEsgx4a4Q-uSW6POHhxqehEe9QCLcB/s1600/IMG_20170131_182704206_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UBROH5XLD38/WKB5PCu0KXI/AAAAAAAAAFY/kzDppOsdEsgx4a4Q-uSW6POHhxqehEe9QCLcB/s320/IMG_20170131_182704206_HDR.jpg" width="222" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"> heart of gold portrayed in the almost sweet like dry down towards the oud-ambery base.&nbsp; This fragrance is addictive – and why wouldn’t it be with those dirty green cannabis notes to flirt with?&nbsp; With this Attar, you’ll be standing on top of those rugged mountains whilst watching out for your enemy combatant, with rifle in hand.&nbsp; This is war - &nbsp;whenever you feel like it. </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Want to give these fragrances a whirl?&nbsp; Well, in conjunction with The Scented Souq, I have a limited amount of samples to give away for FREE.&nbsp; The Samples will include Khyber Hashish, Attar of Shahrazad, Kashgar Silk and Chenille Lotus.&nbsp; They only ask that you pay shipping, which is at £3.95 for UK deliveries and £8.50 for international deliveries – BUT, you’ll also get an exclusive £5.00 off your next order of a full bottle of ANY Attar, from their website.&nbsp; Find out more about the New Fragrance line, at <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/">www.scentedsouq.co.uk</a><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Payments towards shipping can be paid via paypal to:&nbsp; <a href="mailto:sales@scentedsouq.co.uk">sales@scentedsouq.co.uk</a><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">HURRY!&nbsp; There is only a limited number of samples available, and once stock runs out, any payments received will be refunded immediately!&nbsp; Please remember to add a note stating your preferred fragrance for sample and to leave a review on The Scented Souq’s Facebook Page!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Enjoy and Happy Sniffing!<o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><o:p></o:p></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/101328394162581772431noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-30112714839028648692017-01-18T13:26:00.002-08:002017-01-18T18:08:10.264-08:00Perfumery from the Underworld: The Secrets of Ancient Egypt Unravelled! <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P-4Q2KqVRFQ/WH_cnEPDNwI/AAAAAAAAIzM/2HgJ7rfTDu4kOSDjLe3HuOLnexUPg4vXgCLcB/s1600/9f2c3641f257982aa8d0cc3f6040cdd6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-P-4Q2KqVRFQ/WH_cnEPDNwI/AAAAAAAAIzM/2HgJ7rfTDu4kOSDjLe3HuOLnexUPg4vXgCLcB/s320/9f2c3641f257982aa8d0cc3f6040cdd6.jpg" width="233" /></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The ancient Egyptians had enjoyed a variety of different types of fragrances.&nbsp; They had exotic luxurious perfumes, that came in the form of oils, solid perfumes, fragrant unguent cones, incense and sacred unguents which were used in sacred/holy ceremonies.&nbsp; In fact, ancient Egyptian perfumes were a known luxury throughout the ancient world and it was a centre perfume production, with many ingredients acquired either from the land of Egypt in the form of plants, or imported ingredients – but of course within ancient Egyptian society, access to these luxurious fragrances were confined within the noble elite classes of people.&nbsp; Fragrance was not used primarily for scent, but people used to also use them on their skin as a shield from the scorching sun or harsh winds.&nbsp; One very popular women's fragrance, was called ‘The Egyptian’ – no joke!!&nbsp; In fact, it was common to name fragrances after places and regions, especially when they were produced to be exported.&nbsp; ‘The Egyptian’ was a highly-concentrated fragrance oil, not much different to the more modern <i>attars, </i>and they were made using highly expensive ingredients, including cinnamon, myrrh and fragrant wine.&nbsp;</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The animal-derived fragrance ingredients, which are held in such high value and esteem by modern perfumers today, such as civet, musk and ambergris, were largely unknown in ancient Egypt and were not used in their perfumes.&nbsp; In fact, their perfumes comprised mostly of animal fat bases and basis of Balanos oil.&nbsp; Fragrance essences were taken from lilies, lotus (of various types), herbs and some fruit, including juniper berries and moringa tree seeds which are fruit and were grown for their use in perfumes, since they produced a fragrant oil.&nbsp; Almond oil was also used. &nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vvBJnyLAH40/WH_bFlBElmI/AAAAAAAAIzE/IIeaJR0Fc70HOe1Hm5c-PxeI4AtPCFYsACEw/s1600/f7ed1affdc921c166ef07b2f61cffa5f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vvBJnyLAH40/WH_bFlBElmI/AAAAAAAAIzE/IIeaJR0Fc70HOe1Hm5c-PxeI4AtPCFYsACEw/s1600/f7ed1affdc921c166ef07b2f61cffa5f.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Ancient Egyptian Perfume Bottles</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Another perfume, which was very popular, was called ‘The Mendesian’, which was named after the&nbsp;</span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">city of Mendes, located within the Delta region of Egypt.&nbsp; There have been some discrepancies about the ingredients of this fragrance, however generally speaking, it consisted of notes of Balanos oil, myrrh and resins and some sources states that it also included cassia – a sweet cinnamon.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Apart from this, another complex ancient Egyptian fragrance oil, called ether ‘Metopion’ or ‘Galbanum’, had a list of notes, which again has a few discrepancies.&nbsp; The first account of notes, included bitter almonds oil, green olive oil, cardamom, camel grass, Calamus (sweet flag), honey, wine, myrrh, balsamum seed, galbanum and resin.&nbsp; Another account of the list of notes, which isn’t very different, consists of:&nbsp; bitter almonds, omphacium (green olive oil) cardamom, rush (camel grass), flag (sweet flag), honey, wine, myrrh, terebinth resin (turpentine resin), galbanum and seed of balsam (balsamum seed).&nbsp; Lovely! ;)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Ancient Egyptians referred to perfumes as ‘fragrance of the gods’, and the many gods were actually associated with certain fragrance notes.&nbsp; The fragrance note of marjoram was said to be sacred to the ancient Egyptian god, Sobek and the layman referred to the herb as ‘the herb of Sobek’.&nbsp; The blue lotus fragrance note was said to be the fragrance of the sweat of the Egyptian god, Ra – and if you come across a deep and intense floral scent in the air, it meant that a god was present.&nbsp; Whilst blue lotus perfume was seen as the sweat of Ra, the god Nefertem was regarded as the Lord of the perfumes and the god of the sacred lotus blossom - such was the value of blue lotus.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-miommVkcHN0/WH_bEvBVEqI/AAAAAAAAIzE/MelEyk-eKakegsfHkIyJKl1Lh63PUeDxgCEw/s1600/egypt-edfu-pylon-of-the-temple-of-horus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-miommVkcHN0/WH_bEvBVEqI/AAAAAAAAIzE/MelEyk-eKakegsfHkIyJKl1Lh63PUeDxgCEw/s320/egypt-edfu-pylon-of-the-temple-of-horus.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">In the Temple of Edfu, located in the city of Edfu on the west bank of the river Nile, of upper Egypt, there was a perfume laboratory, and perfume recipes can be seen engraved on the walls, portraying the use of natural resins in perfumery which was then used for anointing the goddess, Hathor.&nbsp; She was regarded as the mistress of all the goddesses of ancient Egypt.&nbsp; This laboratory was also where fragrant materials were stored, along with perfumes called the<i> ‘Fragrance of Horus’ &nbsp;</i>and a perfume called ‘<i>The Tears of Horus </i>’ which consisted of fragrant myrrh.&nbsp; The god Horus used this fragrance during sacred rituals.&nbsp; It was the god Shezmu, who was the ‘lord of the perfume’, or the ‘lord of the precious oil’ – which in todays speak is <i>perfumer!&nbsp; </i>It was within the perfume laboratories of the Temple of Edfu and other temples, where he worked on creating perfume oils for the respective gods of ancient Egypt and he was also charged with the perfuming the dead during the mummification process – imagine!&nbsp; Ancient Egyptian perfume labs!!&nbsp; &nbsp;<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The ancient Egyptian world of perfumery is a complete maze of discovery!&nbsp; One that I certainly enjoy going down!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Until next time, happy sniffing! ;)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-65973531858187554672017-01-12T06:55:00.000-08:002017-01-12T11:21:01.444-08:00The Arabian Note Pad: The Notes Which Define Arabian Perfumery<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Today, I am going to have a look at some fragrance notes, which are so synonymous with Arabian perfumery – and yes!&nbsp; We know of course that Oud is a major player in the fragrance game, in the Middle East, however there are other fragrance notes that are just as important and also deserve some time in the spotlight.&nbsp; Although Oud is always the elephant in the room when it comes to Arabian perfumery (or a camel, mind you! ;) ) its appeal would not be there as much if it weren’t for the other supporting actors in the orchestra which is Arabian fine fragrance.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Here, I am going to break down some important notes found within Arabian perfumery, detailing also why they are so significant in the region.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></o:p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VMR4BwAjdQQ/WHeW4OFjZqI/AAAAAAAAIto/nYT95CPYukUPEwFMQ3Dvjh1hETNG86WswCLcB/s1600/Saffron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VMR4BwAjdQQ/WHeW4OFjZqI/AAAAAAAAIto/nYT95CPYukUPEwFMQ3Dvjh1hETNG86WswCLcB/s200/Saffron.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Saffron<o:p></o:p></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Saffron is a commodity that is used in different aspect of life in the Middle East, Persia and the neighbouring regions.&nbsp; In the Arabian gulf region in particular, saffron is used in coffee along with cinnamon and other spices.&nbsp; Apart from that, of course saffron is used to spice food.&nbsp; According to Islamic tradition, saffron is the grass of paradise – so it’s no surprise that saffron is used as an important fragrance note in local fragrance creations, especially since fragrance in general has religious connotations.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3SA4RSynwak/WHeXTHpERqI/AAAAAAAAItw/Wp5ZvpOM5dA9QWpkxnJWGpG38JxZMIb9gCLcB/s1600/DeerMusk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="281" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3SA4RSynwak/WHeXTHpERqI/AAAAAAAAItw/Wp5ZvpOM5dA9QWpkxnJWGpG38JxZMIb9gCLcB/s320/DeerMusk.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Musk<o:p></o:p></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Again, according to Islamic tradition, musk is the soil of the banks of the rivers of paradise – so its not surprising to find musk to be an important commodity in fragrance.&nbsp; Both black and white musk are of significant cultural importance, when it comes to perfumery in the Middle East but since it is derived from nature (the musk deer), black musk is the preferred perfumery note.&nbsp; Today of course, due to restrictions in the trade of black musk, high quality synthetic ingredients can be found to imitate the smell of authentic deer musk, whilst white musk has a nice soapy and calming effect!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rose<o:p></o:p></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Ah rose!&nbsp; That eternal fragrance note, always lingering in the background of most fragrances wherever they may be from!&nbsp; The Rose Attar has a strong and long history in the Middle East, in particular, Saudi Arabia.&nbsp; The city of Taif in Saudi Arabia is a hotbed of roses.&nbsp; This city hosts an annual rose festival to celebrate its rosey heritage and status as the hothouse for rose cultivation.&nbsp; The fertile land produces rose waters, roses essences and other rose by-products that have other uses, such as being mixed in milk or food.&nbsp; It is from here that roses are exported to neighbouring countries of the region and used to form as a part of manufactured fragrances.&nbsp; Its main cultivation is the ever fragrant variety of the Damask rose species. &nbsp;Check out this wonderful video shot in the Taif rose plantation:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/EoX0j4Adock/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EoX0j4Adock?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vc9Q95PvGI8/WHeX3KuxQdI/AAAAAAAAIt4/OhMyfNofmyEsO3MzS4O_1SLHVekBkKOLACLcB/s1600/henna.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vc9Q95PvGI8/WHeX3KuxQdI/AAAAAAAAIt4/OhMyfNofmyEsO3MzS4O_1SLHVekBkKOLACLcB/s320/henna.jpg" width="213" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Henna<o:p></o:p></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Henna is a staple of Middle Eastern tradition.&nbsp; Not only does henna adorn the hands and feet of brides all over the Middle Eastern region, in elaborate and fancy tattoos, but it is also a popular ingredient in regional attars.&nbsp; In fact, the use of henna by women is something of an Islamic religious obligation, so henna is used throughout the year on a daily basis by women, cementing it has a part of the cultural heritage.&nbsp; In fragrance, it has a musty wet earthy scent, being a perfect base note to regional attars.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-H_2vMdL8GsQ/WHeX_QMIcUI/AAAAAAAAIt8/1q5JhIlypTssE7oQUEbjrtgAdPbfvYUAwCLcB/s1600/frankinsence.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-H_2vMdL8GsQ/WHeX_QMIcUI/AAAAAAAAIt8/1q5JhIlypTssE7oQUEbjrtgAdPbfvYUAwCLcB/s320/frankinsence.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Frankincense and Myrrh<o:p></o:p></span></u></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Well, does this need any introduction?&nbsp; From biblical times, when Queen of Sheba’s Kingdom and economy had relied heavily on the trade of frankincense, it was exported from Yemen and Oman to lands as far as the levant – destined for Damascus, Jerusalem and Egypt, where churches were and still are, fragranced with these esteemed holy essences.&nbsp; Referred to as ‘Lubaan’ and ‘Mur’ in Arabic, these notes form as important base notes, especially with linear Arabian attars that have been used since the beginning of time.&nbsp; It doesn’t look like the use of these notes is going to dwindle anytime soon!&nbsp; In Oman and Yemen, where frankincense originated, it is even used to produce a drink, mixed with water in order to obtain its health benefits. &nbsp;<o:p></o:p>Frankincense of course is also used as Bakhoor – burned to release its fragrance.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Apart from these notes listed above, which are quintessential notes found in traditional Arabian perfumery, of course there are other wonderful notes that have come in from neighbouring regions, including importantly, India – where we see the cultivation of important fragrance commodities including Sandalwood and Jasmine – making their presence known in modern Arabian fragrances.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Apart from Oud, what is your favourite Arabian fragrance note?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Until next time, Happy Sniffing! :) &nbsp;</span><o:p></o:p></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-51564103274082991252017-01-06T08:00:00.002-08:002017-01-07T04:36:03.215-08:00A Fresh New Year And Fresh New Start… With Some New Fragrances!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">So, here we are struggling to keep up with those New Year’s resolutions, trying to find ways of discreetly disposing those unwanted Christmas presents (If any of them are perfumes – you know where to send them to! ;) ) BUT it’s the start of 2017!&nbsp; Hurray!!!&nbsp; May this be a fantabulous start to the new year!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">So, what do we have planned, fragrance wise for this coming new year?&nbsp; Well!&nbsp; Where to start!&nbsp; I will be working with <a href="http://www.scentedsouq.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Scented Souq</a>, to revamp the product range… bringing in affordable luxury fragrance oils, that are in line with many niche perfume houses.&nbsp; The aim here, is simple!&nbsp; To bring in luxurious affordable Arabian-inspired Attars which will include a mix of oud scents and non-oud scents, with the aim of pleasing every type of fragrance palette!&nbsp; There will also be exclusive sets available, which will include lotions and soaps… so watch this space!&nbsp; This will be a busy year! <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">But as a nice close to 2016, in December my interview with Islam Channel (in the UK) was aired</span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"> on their 'up and coming talent' section, from a programme called ‘Step Up’, which is aimed at encouraging and motivating Muslim teenagers in the UK</span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">.&nbsp; Here is the interview:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/I6DhbglEiHM/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/I6DhbglEiHM?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Apart from that, I will be focusing a lot of time on my writing!&nbsp; If you enjoy travel, and history and more specifically ancient Egypt, then you may be interested in having a look at my latest book, which was published by <a href="http://www.orientalpublishing.co.uk/" target="_blank">Oriental Publishing</a> before Christmas.&nbsp; Available worldwide via <a href="http://amzn.to/2jbOZd8" target="_blank">Amazon</a>, the short book is written in a form of poetic storytelling in line with the style of poetic Arabic language – the language of Egypt.&nbsp; &nbsp;If you enjoy Sunday afternoons, reading poetic-style short stories, then this book is for you!&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">So what are your plans for the New Year? Have a perfect one! :)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><o:p></o:p></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-56785339046427194982016-12-22T18:16:00.000-08:002016-12-22T18:16:12.791-08:00The Holiday Scent: The Scent of Nativity!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pebe_W7yWE4/WFyGJjAzXRI/AAAAAAAAIWQ/4E-Hp6WEsqUnAHHBgnYWmPW79vNGw5gdACLcB/s1600/9c5f128e6774874221992563f95d2d4a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pebe_W7yWE4/WFyGJjAzXRI/AAAAAAAAIWQ/4E-Hp6WEsqUnAHHBgnYWmPW79vNGw5gdACLcB/s320/9c5f128e6774874221992563f95d2d4a.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Well, it’s that time of year!</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">&nbsp; </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Everyone is getting in their last-minute Christmas shopping done, and the song of Christmas and Christmas Carols are serenading in the air!</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">&nbsp;</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Someone asked me, what kind of fragrance one should wear during the Christmas holiday season?&nbsp; Well!&nbsp; There is only ONE answer for that!&nbsp; On looking back at the traditional meaning behind Christmas, but most importantly for me (of course!) the frankincense, myrrh and gold story really inspires us, in regards to what the holiday seasons fragrance should be!&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Over the last few days, in my attempts to find the perfect fragrance, I searched through my wardrobe of <i>oud’s </i>and <i>Orientals </i>and came out with <a href="http://amzn.to/2i7l99Z" target="_blank">Dolce &amp;Gabbana’s Lail Malaki</a> (Royal Night), which is technically a male scent – but this fragrance is targeted to the Middle East market, and in the Middle East, the gender lines are either blurred or non-existent when it comes or oud or woodsy oriental scents!&nbsp; This fragrance is a wonderfully heavy woody fragrance, with a mellow balsamic opening, going through the woody notes with backgrounds of musk.&nbsp; You would think that there would be some oud in this, but no.&nbsp; However, that did not translate to a disappointment for me.&nbsp; It is a sophisticated fragrance, with class.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I-OY-JzTKJs/WFyG1KG6jNI/AAAAAAAAIWY/3aQLU4ZtcvsOd4-mqa_5YNW1wsToywa4ACLcB/s1600/IMG_20161223_015404.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I-OY-JzTKJs/WFyG1KG6jNI/AAAAAAAAIWY/3aQLU4ZtcvsOd4-mqa_5YNW1wsToywa4ACLcB/s320/IMG_20161223_015404.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> <o:p></o:p></span><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I kept rummaging through my collection, and I found an oud fragrance, <a href="http://amzn.to/2heDX8K" target="_blank">Gucci Oud Intense</a>.&nbsp; A wonderful oud opening, with its harsh notes being drowned by the sweet wood.&nbsp; Then the leather notes came into play and the dry down was sweet!&nbsp; Too sweet… playing on my skin, jumping from one sweet note to another.&nbsp; It was a warm sweetness, but too ‘icky’ for me.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I4w03-yeU_0/WFyGvbqGDoI/AAAAAAAAIWU/M2M_iyP2cl4DqzSyZuD_MDH5Z_V-AvwlQCEw/s1600/ScentOfHeaven-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I4w03-yeU_0/WFyGvbqGDoI/AAAAAAAAIWU/M2M_iyP2cl4DqzSyZuD_MDH5Z_V-AvwlQCEw/s320/ScentOfHeaven-2.jpg" width="117" /></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">So, I cast my eyes towards my own creation – a creation that aims to rekindle the original and the traditional <i>attar’s </i>of Arabia. &nbsp;Its not a spray like the other two, but in fact is a highly concentrated fragrance oil, of excellent quality. &nbsp;It includes wonderful mellow scents of authentic oud. &nbsp;Going back to basics, we have notes of roses, musk, sandalwood, saffron and of course ancient oud playing with each other – it’s The Scent of Heaven, and is a scent that actually would fit perfectly in the nativity scene.&nbsp; Now this smelled like Christmas!&nbsp; And I think that I have now found my scent for the holiday season.&nbsp; The Scent of Heaven, is currently exclusively available at <a href="https://www.blogger.com/The%20Holiday%20Scent:%20%20The%20Scent%20of%20Nativity!" target="_blank">The Scented Souq.</a><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Happy Holiday’s to all and I hope that the coming year is full of happiness and joy! :)</span><o:p></o:p></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-68340084073460692772016-12-13T10:08:00.000-08:002016-12-13T10:08:15.946-08:00The Morning After The Night Before: The Fragrance Awards of Arabia 2016<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KvKCpO0ClSQ/WFAvBck1miI/AAAAAAAAILE/hJ91YIqwK1sgu8Aq5TcFLaQfYKI-iCR2gCEw/s320/41.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Fragrance Awards of Arabia 2016, Dubai, UAE</span></td></tr></tbody></table><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KvKCpO0ClSQ/WFAvBck1miI/AAAAAAAAILE/hJ91YIqwK1sgu8Aq5TcFLaQfYKI-iCR2gCEw/s1600/41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We are still in the aftermath of the fantastic Fragrance Awards of Arabia, 2016 – which was a wonderful event, held at the esteemed Burj Al-Arab in Dubai, UAE on the 22nd November 2016. The event was filled to the brim with top players and leaders of the regional fragrance industry. The winners here were many of course, with Arabian Oud being brought well back into the spotlight, with their fantastic new range, winning awards left, right and centre! In the category of ‘Fragrance of the Year’, three fragrances by Arabian Oud, and three fragrances by Coty led the way, whilst other spots were taken by Interparfums USA and Oud Elite. Two of&nbsp;</span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Arabian Oud’s winning fragrances, are<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WMW2ZJdK8oQ/WFAvNh96prI/AAAAAAAAILE/mcut77P3YawQb6RymrvMpCy7Ia1IJxUxwCEw/s1600/25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WMW2ZJdK8oQ/WFAvNh96prI/AAAAAAAAILE/mcut77P3YawQb6RymrvMpCy7Ia1IJxUxwCEw/s320/25.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-size: small;">The Winners</span></td></tr></tbody></table>fragrances for Men – Signature and Solid Black, with Solid Black only being available regionally, and not in Europe. But the shining Ladies fragrance, was the beautifully light Madawi…to call it an elegant sophistication, is an understatement! It isn’t a typically oud fragrance at all – surprisingly, with its beautiful very Arabic packaging, one would be led to think that a fragrance packaged like this would be oud galore. Not.&nbsp;</span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hXmnOdz3HjQ/WFAvtJS5qiI/AAAAAAAAILE/q1F7Mr94CZIqjDCaZSEuWlsxo4YuTpRNwCEw/s320/IMG_20161213_170830.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Madawi, by Arabian Oud, Fragrance of The Year winner, 2016</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="color: #ead1dc;"></span><br /><span style="color: #ead1dc;"></span></div><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hXmnOdz3HjQ/WFAvtJS5qiI/AAAAAAAAILE/q1F7Mr94CZIqjDCaZSEuWlsxo4YuTpRNwCEw/s1600/IMG_20161213_170830.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">On opening, the&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; text-align: center;">powerful note of the wonderfully juicy Peach reminded me of a wonderful summers day, sitting in a green grassed, highly manicured park with fruit trees swaying in the horizon, with a picnic of fruits on a bed of the wonderful middle note of pineapple blossom which is beautifully blended and punctuated by the top note of the apple blossom. The rose dry down is a wonderful melody interwinding with the earthy musk and patchouli notes, providing excellent sillage. This fragrance, although targeted&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; text-align: center;">to women, can be worn confidently by men who appreciate an elegant fragrance. Not surprising, then, is it, that this wonderful fragrance won a spot as Fragrance of The Year!</span></span></div><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iVhsn9NgsCE/WFAzHVQ52vI/AAAAAAAAILQ/gFhFQr7qIm4G9xiOAl4v8D94MRP-1tK3gCEw/s1600/IMG_20161213_173840.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iVhsn9NgsCE/WFAzHVQ52vI/AAAAAAAAILQ/gFhFQr7qIm4G9xiOAl4v8D94MRP-1tK3gCEw/s320/IMG_20161213_173840.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-size: small;">Ladies' Fragrance - Winners of Award, Fragrance of The Year, 2016</span></td></tr></tbody></table></span><br /><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Another wonderful fragrance that bagged the prestigious Fragrance of The Year award, was a fragrance by a smaller regional house – Oud Elite. Oud Elite is a wonderful niche fragrance house, that operates only within the Arabian Gulf region and are not currently available in Europe or North America. Their fragrances are&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large; text-align: center;">treasures of the East, which <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nhemqvzn7NM/WFAvgwqZdgI/AAAAAAAAILE/NAihfuL-jNA1ifomvfkhOQ8TzQZpFMuAACEw/s1600/38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nhemqvzn7NM/WFAvgwqZdgI/AAAAAAAAILE/NAihfuL-jNA1ifomvfkhOQ8TzQZpFMuAACEw/s320/38.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>have not been conquered yet, giving them an aura of exclusivity along with regional perfumery quality and excellence. But their award-winning fragrance, which I had the pleasure of sampling also, was a fantastically well composed scent – truly like the notes of a musical, the fragrance, Pure Black for Her is an utterly beautiful perfume which take a pride of place in the company’s offerings.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />The top opening notes are a wonderful bouquet of grapefruit,<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>bergamot and mandarin, complementing that ever so slight bitterness of the grapefruit. The bergamot acts as the fragrant bridge over which we across to be greeted by the base notes of slightly dense almond and black apricot, providing a sweet-woody refreshing pick up on my skin. I <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nQoqh5MN7fA/WFAwgBUrUjI/AAAAAAAAILE/gnOGRfItcWANx4CMZkTwgLS-2q7-SrfDQCEw/s1600/BqcJHi8CYAAyJV1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nQoqh5MN7fA/WFAwgBUrUjI/AAAAAAAAILE/gnOGRfItcWANx4CMZkTwgLS-2q7-SrfDQCEw/s320/BqcJHi8CYAAyJV1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Pure Black, by Oud Elite, Fragrance of The Year winner, 2016</span></td></tr></tbody></table>can&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">also get a wonderful blast of white florals towards the dry down, going into the more woodier notes of cedar wood, amber and a warm vanilla. This is a very uniquely wonderful fragrance, with a beautiful aura and exquisite-ness about it.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /><br />These were my favourite picks, from the small selection of eight fragrances that won the Fragrance of the Year award… and these fragrances certainly deserved their spots!!<br /><br /> </span></span><br /> </span></div></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-27523704045055391092016-12-01T18:04:00.000-08:002016-12-01T19:02:25.682-08:00Move Over, Henry Jacques! You Have Some Shoes To Fill: This Is Sylheti Oud of Bangladesh: Holioud<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aG_6o6_hhuw/WEDWfMTXbMI/AAAAAAAAH-o/C948NpWWZUkkPItFCQcuiOIbu19GQMPzwCLcB/s1600/IMG_20161202_002811004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aG_6o6_hhuw/WEDWfMTXbMI/AAAAAAAAH-o/C948NpWWZUkkPItFCQcuiOIbu19GQMPzwCLcB/s320/IMG_20161202_002811004.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">So, after a short while of not posting – here I am! Whilst being away busy working on some forthcoming books I am writing, about which I will be posting soon, I was pleasantly surprised on receiving some samples of some Sylheti Oud of Bangladesh – literally across the border from the region of India, which is so famous for its oud, in Assam. Indian oud is known to be ‘barnyardi’ in character, amongst its other characteristics and this sample which I got from Ahmed at Holioud, does not fail to disappoint. From the 2 samples that I received, the sample I tried at first, referred as ‘HS24’ screamed bitterness on opening and the expected barnyard. This stuff is strong – just like pure unadulterated oud should be! Holioud – a name made up of ‘Holi’ and ‘Oud’, giving it connotations of a holy product – related to the heavens and spirituality. I discussed this in my book, which can be found <a href="http://amzn.to/2fY4iHi" target="_blank">here</a>, but generally speaking, it is not the first time that oud has its heavenly associations. I mean, we know that the stinking oud on first whiff is not something that would automatically make you feel or think you’re in paradise – quite the opposite in fact. How can such a stingingly barnyard scent that some may say smells like cow dung, be heavenly? But this isn’t what is referred to as heavenly. Being in the state of having acquired the scent and even possibly blending it with other notes that are also said to be heavenly, such as the saffrons and roses, is what brings it to become something which is described as heavenly. But you do not get into that state, without the inclusion of oud, and this is the vital point in what makes this fragrance note unique. And it is here, where producers like Holioud comes in.</span></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />Holioud is a Bangladesh based oud manufacturing base, with</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RYsR6jgcchY/WEDWD_x32DI/AAAAAAAAH-k/U3oyZZY39-gcfNwAs-9oyXDuIVvuOEVQgCEw/s1600/1939786_1546107652272830_121446415125929580_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RYsR6jgcchY/WEDWD_x32DI/AAAAAAAAH-k/U3oyZZY39-gcfNwAs-9oyXDuIVvuOEVQgCEw/s320/1939786_1546107652272830_121446415125929580_n.jpg" width="180" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">their own plantation of agarwood trees, producing high quality distilled oud, and of course not only oud oils, but oud chips which are burnt for their Bakhoor. <br /><br />The sharpness of the barnyard notes in the HS24 sample lasted quite a long while, before it hit the middle notes of intense berries and hardcore medicinal amber types notes on my skin. This is all before the notes of even stronger red amber and myrrh start to appear and suddenly I was transported to a time, when I had the privilege of sampling an exclusive Harrod’s Henry Jacques oud oil, notably and specifically Onction. I would say that I am 99% adamant and certain that the oud used in Onction, was of this variety, and most possibly even coming from the same distillation and plant! The similarities of the dry down were that close. My impression of the Onction dry down was certainly an experience that I will not forget easily. The strong myrrh notes and possibly the frankincense notes that came through made me feel like I was sat in an ancient church, in the middle of a Jesus-era Bethlehem! Although churches never existed during Jesus’ time on earth of course ;) this is certainly what it felt like, or at least during the eras immediately following Jesus’ era. Or I could have been sitting alongside the Queen of Sheba in a private carriage, with her camels in front of us piled high with myrrh and frankincense. We caught the wafting notes lingering towards us, in the still midnight air as we travelled on the cross roads of the silk trade routes somewhere in the Arabian desert on our way to the Levant from Yemen in order to furnish the lands of King Soloman, with heavenly scents. What a situation to be in! The dry down of this oud is reminiscent to these stories. And surely the stuff distilled by Holioud has got to be the real deal, making us come out smelling more than Amazing! The specific sample I tried, is worth a whopping £250.00-£300.00 for a 12ml bottle – and we can see that Henry Jacques has some intense competition ;) <br /><br />Want some? Email me at <a href="mailto:shaneela@shaneela.co.uk">shaneela@shaneela.co.uk</a> to be put in touch with Holioud<br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br />Happy Sniffing!</span></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-34008065164728780182016-11-22T17:14:00.000-08:002016-11-22T17:14:19.227-08:00Faeces for Perfume? Well, This Is Bill Gates’ Hand On A New Fragrance…<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">…Not a very nice thought, for the start of a fragrance Blog post, right?! Well, it’s all good! :) In recent news, there has been that buzz in the air about a new development within the fragrance industry – but the news is not to do with some magical new fragrance note, or a flower shrub from the planet Mars that produces a wonderful scent – though that would be interesting! No! It’s all about poop… that other scent, albeit repulsive, that us human species produce. Yukk!! <br /><br />It has been reported widely all over the internet and on the news, that in its aim of improving healthcare and helping to eradicate poverty, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will be funding the creation of a brand new perfume, which will – wait for it – smell like human feces! This is a project being led by non-other than Firmenich with the goal of developing odour free toilets and improving sanitation in the poorest countries of the world. These new toilets with help to stop sewage from entering water and eventually of course halt the spreading of diseases such as diarrhoea. <br /><br /><br />With funding from Bill Gates’ foundation, researchers at Firminech used a perfume that smelled like human feces and then developed fragrances that help to block the olfactory receptors located within our noses and this allows us to reject out those bad smells – just like olfactory fatigue that we experience when sniffing too much nose candy at our local fragrance parlour! This contrasts with the usual idea of using fragrances to mask bad odours found in toilets, which of course is not very effective. The faecal perfume was created by isolating the specific compounds that are responsible for the bad odour and then recreating the odour using synthetic compounds. Want to find out more? Check out this video about Bill Gates’ perfume project:</span><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/oXbk7kotVlw/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/oXbk7kotVlw?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-8208207372137009482016-11-18T06:11:00.001-08:002016-11-18T06:52:47.839-08:00The Fragrance of Association – A Luxury Perfume Houses’ Key To Success And a Consumers Journey Into Nostalgia and Hidden Memories <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-piJ-NXETSy0/WC8L2iWlprI/AAAAAAAAHpg/roH3ekdqj6cwNhFG_oB6nR3EcshOuGPsACLcB/s1600/20161118_140309.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-piJ-NXETSy0/WC8L2iWlprI/AAAAAAAAHpg/roH3ekdqj6cwNhFG_oB6nR3EcshOuGPsACLcB/s320/20161118_140309.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">We see it everywhere; we experience it all the time. I, like many who find themselves playing around with notes of different fragrances on perfume sample counters, always come across that ONE which makes us hold our horses. A sniff of one random one and that’s it – it all comes flooding back. That memory of the smell of spices wafting through the air of that Marrakesh souq we were wondering through last year, or that beach in the south of France, or that glitz and glamour of the Monaco after party you attended a few years back… all come screaming back at you. Your suddenly transported to a time and a place that you never would have thought you would remember again. I mean sure, you would remember that event that happened in your life – you will remember that holiday resort you went on 2 years ago where you drank coconut water directly from the coconuts, but you will not usually remember something like that smell coming from the charcoal grill restaurant that you pass on your way to see the leaning tower of Pisa. You would generally remember the views of the city from on top of the leaning tower of Pisa! But this is what a fragrance does. Not only will that woody tobacco-y scent bring you back to the nuanced scent of that charcoal grill, but it will also bring with it that excitement you felt, and the experiences associated with it. It is the perfectly nuanced nostalgic moments that tend to come back with fragrance notes – those that you would never remember generally, or even want to remember, specifically. I mean, what’s so great about walking past that charcoal grill, right? The answer doesn't lie in what the memory is about in particular, but how that memory makes you <i>feel</i>. <br /><br />This is very true for occasions, like Christmas – where people would associate ginger, cinnamon and maybe eggnog with that time of year – even a shot of brandy! But what we can see here, is that these scents and smells of Christmas, conjure up that feeling of excitement, happiness and warmth. And this is the type of thing that major brands and fragrance houses use in their scents – they want to use notes that help people to conjure up memories of a past, a happy event that makes them come back for more. In marketing, with the importance of imagery and smell of a fragrance, the feeling that perfumes gives you when you smell it is a major marketing tool as well. That fragrance which reminds you of your childhood, could in fact be the same fragrance that your mother wore – you just had no idea. Maybe the smell of your mother’s hair you smelled when you hugged her as a child is a nostalgic memory, brought back by the latest niche fragrance. But generally, you wouldn't remember the smell of your mother’s hair! It is that which makes you buy it to treasure and capture that memory – that feel-good feeling we all like to get. But of course, there can be instances of very strange memories coming back with a fragrance – maybe the smell of stale baked beans from the school dinner canteen from when you were at school, a scent I am sure not many people would buy into! And then there are those which make you nostalgic for a time and a place, with which you have no association with whatsoever! A case of genetic nostalgia, me thinks! ;) This was true for me recently, when sampling Kurjidian’s oud satin mood… that rose opening note, which I didn’t realise was rose, until some moments later but it certainly had an emotional effect on me, in that it was very familiar and a very <i>‘down to my roots’</i> type of smell. But low and behold I have no idea of any event in life that is associated with that rose at all – maybe I had whiffed something similar on my grandmother before, who knows? It’s a complete and utter mystery. But one thing that I did know for sure, was that for a writer like myself fragrances offer a lot of good food for thought which translates well when writing!<br /><br />What scents bring back good memories for you?<br /><br />Happy Sniffing! :)</span></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-31877145613857670492016-11-16T09:53:00.003-08:002016-11-16T09:54:59.129-08:00Real Authentic Oud: Gold Oud by Killian - An Oud Lovers Dream!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4VMBf1x-oA8/WCydBX-UTJI/AAAAAAAAHok/uq0G9fN7qgMWgo_8wJg6LdTNfEwI42gBACLcB/s1600/oudgold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4VMBf1x-oA8/WCydBX-UTJI/AAAAAAAAHok/uq0G9fN7qgMWgo_8wJg6LdTNfEwI42gBACLcB/s320/oudgold.jpg" width="234" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Dive into a sea of rich leathery Cambodian oud – swimming with the floating buds of rose floating above the calm sea water, whilst you dip your head into the heavy scent of long lasting oud, which I must add is probably a genuine and authentic oud. This piece of artwork does not consist of a whole bouquet of olfactory notes, as many niche brands do. But this oud-heaven, which it should be named as by oud enthusiasts, is something that they will not be disappointed in. Forget the harsh synthetic plasticy-dry ‘oud’ that we see coming from many niche brands. This is not another Dior Ispahan oud-rose combo, which honestly in my opinion is a very harsh and dry oud. This stuff is the real deal. And surprised? This stuff which was a Harrods exclusive but is now available at Selfridges, retailing at £320.00 for a 50ml bottle. For those in North America, I have found only ONE available at $474.99 plus shipping – so grab it while you can, <a href="http://amzn.to/2f4VvTL" target="_blank">here</a>.&nbsp;</span><br /><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The rose essence, in addition to the Turkish rose play very well together and although the rose and oud combos are such old news already, I must say that this is an exception! With the fact that it is targeted to the Middle Eastern markets and consumers embracing all that both Harrods and Selfridges must offer in terms of niche fragrances, it is without a doubt that some of the best quality and top notch ingredients were used here and tame a demanding market for excellence. The longevity of this is excellent – comparable to the longevity of the stingingly dry Dior Ispahan, and the silage? Well, mind blowing. This fragrance will turn heads! Many heads! <br /><br /><br />On opening, you have that wonderful stench of the authentic Oud Cambody – and I am back in the shopping Malls of Dubai again with the image of flowing black abayas and heavy sunglasses over the beaming sunlight. If anything, oud has created that association in many people’s heads and considering that this Killian oud is as original as it can get for a non-Middle Eastern fragrance house, that is quite something – easily passing the test with flying colours. And of course Middle Eastern consumers absolutely love the forthcoming gushing notes of rose that flows in the heart of scent, which is the role played here by the rose essence, before settling down into the delicious Turkish rose notes. This is a MUST try for all Oud lovers!<br /><br />Happy Sniffing! :)</span></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-17251851325248361642016-11-12T11:03:00.000-08:002016-11-12T11:03:11.936-08:00 The Middle Eastern Perfume Markets Are On A Roll!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HEog8gHTbqA/WCdlJ15lzzI/AAAAAAAAHks/fqMTdNGv8oQtl-TcCfA489cl8SDqDNpFACLcB/s1600/20160915_022755.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HEog8gHTbqA/WCdlJ15lzzI/AAAAAAAAHks/fqMTdNGv8oQtl-TcCfA489cl8SDqDNpFACLcB/s320/20160915_022755.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Having discussed in a previous post, about how the Middle East will be replacing European perfume hubs, such as London and Paris when it comes to the world capitals of perfume, it begs the question, how well do these Arabian brands do on their home territory? So let’s take a deeper look at a couple of the brands which are certainly making their marks! <br /><br />In 2015, the Middle East and North Africa region’s (MENA) fragrance market was worth US$5.2 billion in 2015 and during the same time, Saudi Arabian based fragrance house <a href="http://amzn.to/2eO7aTx" target="_blank">Abdul Samad Al-Qureshi</a>, took a sales value share of 17% being very popular amongst local Saudi populations and those in the region. With outlets in the tourist-driven United Arab Emirates and other neighbours in the Arab region, Al-Qureshi’s products appeal to visitor’s who would like to take a piece of the Middle East back home with them. Apart from that of course, they are renowned with offering uniquely authentic and traditional fragrances – continuing with a traditional Arabian heritage. One of Al-Qureshi’s competitors, Arabian Oud, another perfume house also originally based out of Saudi Arabia took a total sales value share of 35% in 2015, showing a clear lead. &nbsp;Then of course we have other players, such as Ajmal, Al Haramain and other which have taken up a portion of the remaining 52% market share.<br /><br />One main appeal of <a href="http://amzn.to/2fmuLyr" target="_blank">Arabian Oud</a>, is that it has become an </span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yKTOtldl0-I/WCdlh1whyrI/AAAAAAAAHkw/VAfx1oeoYIAPYoYGAOcQx6JsjGPqe8F0QCLcB/s1600/Arabian_Oud.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yKTOtldl0-I/WCdlh1whyrI/AAAAAAAAHkw/VAfx1oeoYIAPYoYGAOcQx6JsjGPqe8F0QCLcB/s1600/Arabian_Oud.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">international leader in Arabian niche fragrances, with outlets in Paris and London and their market share is rapidly growing year on year, from 2014, when their market share value was 28%. Their appeal is the fact that they cater to those of various income-levels and with products that would appeal to a wider market and broader ranges in tastes. Products include the likes of <a href="http://amzn.to/2eOapKo" target="_blank">Kalemat</a> and <a href="http://amzn.to/2g5MECR" target="_blank">Woody</a>, which are very popular, for both eastern and western customers. <br /><br /><br />It is these fragrance houses that portray themselves and produce products which give that unique aura that Arabian fragrances are famous for. It’s no wonder that Arabian fragrances has made their permanent marks on the western fragrance markets. The Middle Eastern fragrance market, is certainly one to watch out for – especially for perfume connoisseurs! </span></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-50171159688147633672016-11-09T19:39:00.001-08:002016-11-09T20:16:03.939-08:00Post Trump Slump - now lets sniff this!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hshD0Cu54xU/WCPr7Gk-N2I/AAAAAAAAHjU/-kl5G0uR6HU_NGe4tRGcWpG0ThPkbkjtACLcB/s1600/10218313.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hshD0Cu54xU/WCPr7Gk-N2I/AAAAAAAAHjU/-kl5G0uR6HU_NGe4tRGcWpG0ThPkbkjtACLcB/s320/10218313.jpeg" width="294" /></a></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">So I guess congratulations are in order for those Americans who have voted in Donald Trump! &nbsp;Love him or loathe him, this is an ushering in of a new phase in the history of American politics - undoubtedly affecting the rest of the world. &nbsp;For those who are shocked (including non-Americans), upset or sad at his election - but chin up! &nbsp;Because I have some good news, which I hope will cheer some of you up! &nbsp;I have been approached by a contact at Christian Dior, who are looking for people to test and review some of their fragrance products - which you get to keep for free, if selected :) &nbsp;Sweet! The fragrance in question, is Miss Dior Absolutely Blooming - so fancy a chance at some free Dior perfume? &nbsp;Click <a href="http://monetisetrk6.co.uk/?a=12351&amp;c=24590&amp;s1=" target="_blank">HERE</a> to be in with the chance to get your hands on some free perfume!</span><br /><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Happy Sniffing! :) &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</span></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-35457888303207108792016-11-07T11:21:00.001-08:002016-11-07T11:26:29.612-08:00Move Over Guys! Us Gals Are on A Roll! Women’s Niche Fragrances Are The Highest Performing Yet!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">It’s not the end of the year already – so figures are not in yet, but estimated sales of women’s niche and fine fragrances are outperforming mass produced fragrances, according to reports.</span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">&nbsp;</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Uiohto5HST0/WCDT5FYqLyI/AAAAAAAAHg4/JGL-6R4aMuUiCrSGELG8DBf_TLKFGkBsgCLcB/s1600/IMG_20161107_191737.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Uiohto5HST0/WCDT5FYqLyI/AAAAAAAAHg4/JGL-6R4aMuUiCrSGELG8DBf_TLKFGkBsgCLcB/s320/IMG_20161107_191737.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">By the end of 2016, the estimated values of women’s niche and fine fragrances are said to be a whopping £727.8 Million, as compared to £76.70 Million estimated sales of mass produced fragrances.&nbsp; Of course, this tells us one thing:&nbsp; us women like unique, good quality fragrances, that are different and appealing at the same time.&nbsp; But are we surprised? <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">In recent times, the trend in niche fragrances has been an all-time high with new emerging brands like The Scented Souq and other more established brands focusing on better quality perfume products.&nbsp; The big brands, such as <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Christian-Dior/b/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;node=1662483031&amp;field-lbr_brands_browse-bin=Christian+Dior&amp;linkCode=ll2&amp;tag=sharowalqam-21&amp;linkId=44679b81bcb874c49725af9a0f09875f" target="_blank">Dior</a> and <a href="http://amzn.to/2ewPhsg" target="_blank">Chanel</a> have branched out their offerings to include niche fragrances, but what do we mean when we talking about <i>niche?&nbsp; </i>Well, of course we are not referring to houses like <a href="http://amzn.to/2fUBIbi" target="_blank">Roja Dove</a> that can produce fragrances that are custom made for over £20,000 a shot, but we are talking about the link between the likes of the evergreen Chanel fragrances, like <a href="http://amzn.to/2fsQzq9" target="_blank">Coco Mademoiselle</a>and those custom-made ones.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lEaAyB85Syo/WCDT7hKg2KI/AAAAAAAAHg8/D8J0TQoC_C8-d8XDZPC-Odd0weFGvm3RwCEw/s1600/IMG_20161107_191459.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lEaAyB85Syo/WCDT7hKg2KI/AAAAAAAAHg8/D8J0TQoC_C8-d8XDZPC-Odd0weFGvm3RwCEw/s320/IMG_20161107_191459.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">These include the likes of <a href="http://amzn.to/2fUDPeY" target="_blank">Tom Ford private label ranges</a> and the <a href="http://amzn.to/2faqyxJ" target="_blank">Amouages</a>, priced in the hundreds of pounds as opposed to the hundreds of thousands of pounds.&nbsp; Also, when talking about niche, we mean adjectives such as <i>exclusivity, unique scents of rare and precious materials </i>and the ability to <i>smell different, and to not smell like anyone else.&nbsp; </i>This is the key.&nbsp; The price tag helps to filter out those people for whom these qualities and others in a fragrance do not matter.&nbsp; They are fragrance notes such as <i>oud </i>that has helped to shape the niche fragrance in the UK and the west in general – a note giving a fragrance that desired <i>aura </i>of <i>uniqueness </i>that niche wearers are craving for.&nbsp; It’s not just any old musk.&nbsp; We want cashmere musk, or Egyptian musk that smells like musk, but doesn't smell like the average Joe Blogs Musk.&nbsp; Here, we come into specifics of ingredients and what qualities they carry, and the benefits of those quality, i.e. how they make us <i>feel.&nbsp; </i>The likes of Creed have been very successful in creating <i>juices </i>that have this unique appeal and has been successful in creating an aura of exclusivity and the same can be said for the likes of <a href="http://amzn.to/2fym94I" target="_blank">Penhaligan’s</a> and how could I forget one of my favourite’s,&nbsp;</span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://amzn.to/2ewZmoN">Maison Francis Kurkdijan</a>?...<br /><br /><br />Happy Sniffing! ;)</span></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-30123325228797671742016-11-04T19:56:00.001-07:002016-11-07T09:41:31.090-08:00My Top Fragrance Picks for Autumn/Winter 2016: Scents to See Us Through The Big Freeze<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1wvuf3Li7q4/WB1KPLCpLhI/AAAAAAAAHdc/61U8m3vT_tI6urHPob6T0Vz4u01CzpH5wCLcB/s1600/14610965_1454161341277640_8767706280101587684_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1wvuf3Li7q4/WB1KPLCpLhI/AAAAAAAAHdc/61U8m3vT_tI6urHPob6T0Vz4u01CzpH5wCLcB/s320/14610965_1454161341277640_8767706280101587684_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">It’s that time of year again! Now, we have the chill slowly but surely biting at us, the nights are becoming colder and colder and those leaves carpeting our streets making them look picture-perfect, are becoming crispier. With the Autumn, comes the smoky-wood burning smell of the air that I smell when walking through parks lined with horse chestnut trees. There is the remnant of the smell of the sweet white blossom like flowers that this tree produces, and the roads are paved with multi coloured leaves in yellows, oranges and bright pinks amongst the emerald green colours. Squirrels are running around collecting the conkers…this is the picture of Autumn. <br /><br />This season brings the opportunity for us to bring out those fragrances from our winter wardrobe stash that has been stored way during the warmer summer months… and we come out with some lovely Autumn slash winters fragrances. So grab that cosy cardigan, grab a cup of cocoa and get yourself in front of that fireplace…here are my picks for this season:</span><br /><div><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zONdKDB6DFo/WB1In0xY7yI/AAAAAAAAHdI/bV4GjiVYl9gCJyNPQYCeoY00BV4fv0YMACLcB/s1600/nd.545.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zONdKDB6DFo/WB1In0xY7yI/AAAAAAAAHdI/bV4GjiVYl9gCJyNPQYCeoY00BV4fv0YMACLcB/s320/nd.545.jpg" width="213" /></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />Serge Lutens perfumes are quite versatile, in the sense that they are excellent for layering. With us waving a sad good bye to the summer (my favourite season!) it would make sense that we would want to have a fragrance that is not too summary, but reminds us of the summer whilst firmly bringing us back to earth into the current Autumn. <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-listing/B002ANHS78/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1634&amp;creative=6738&amp;creativeASIN=B002ANHS78&amp;linkCode=am2&amp;tag=sharowalqam-21" target="_blank">Serge Lutens Fleurs d'Oranger</a> is the perfect candidate to do that! The India tuberose and the orange blossom opening with this scent is absolutely to die for! It is very nostalgic, earthy, fresh and summary at the same time, with its freshness coming in from the wonderful jasmine notes and safely grounded by the caraway and the aromatic nutmeg – which I must add by the way, is one of my favourite spices! This fragrance is one of those versatile keepers of which you always need to have at the back of the wardrobe, to pull out for those emergency situations, where your yearning for that beautiful autumn breeze, with the woody background.&nbsp;</span></div><div><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lFxHjV4Zefs/WB1IzIE-sdI/AAAAAAAAHdM/-F4iZqon4LAWizia6TFo1bu0o7KA7AbZQCLcB/s1600/IMG_20161105_023146.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lFxHjV4Zefs/WB1IzIE-sdI/AAAAAAAAHdM/-F4iZqon4LAWizia6TFo1bu0o7KA7AbZQCLcB/s320/IMG_20161105_023146.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />But if you are feeling very wintery and want to reinforce that, then there is no better fragrance to do that, other than Abdul Samad Al-Qureshi’s Khasab Al-oud. ASAQ is a Saudi perfume house, found all over the Middle East – do check it out if you can! This is a perfect choice in my opinion especially during the end of Autumn coming onto the brink of the winter chill phase. It consists of the finest aged oud notes, with a beautiful blend of jasmine, rose, patchouli and then into a beautiful sandalwood – so relevant for this time of year, with its warming properties. Those who are used to oud will not find this strong, and it gives the perfect balance between the sweeter autumn reminiscent notes and the woodier winter notes. It is a perfect fragrance to layer with musk…. If you be so adventurous! This, like the Surge Lutens, is a unisex fragrance, as most ouds are. The bottle of Khasab al-oud is furnished internally with agarwood chips, perfectly suiting the season!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Mvvs0R-X2ZM/WB1JG4ONIcI/AAAAAAAAHdQ/8lZTovFHDGcVK86JLz5HHLmT4OAfkldhQCLcB/s1600/7aa8adee-8e9d-453f-aaba-a960585c969a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Mvvs0R-X2ZM/WB1JG4ONIcI/AAAAAAAAHdQ/8lZTovFHDGcVK86JLz5HHLmT4OAfkldhQCLcB/s320/7aa8adee-8e9d-453f-aaba-a960585c969a.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />My final pick for this season, is of course none other than Dolce &amp; Gabbana’s Velvet Pure for women – a proper autumn season fragrance, released this year. Although it is for women, it is one of those that men can get away with wearing during the autumn months. It’s a wonderful, almost creamy like concoction of fig leaves, labdanum, root orris and vetiver… a delicious blend! The crisp fig leaves go so well with the smells and the feeling of the crisp autumn breezes, punctuated by the sweet floral accords before bringing out the earthier underlay. This scent was inspired by the wonderful Mediterranean Reseda flower – and the fragrance pays homage to it perfectly!&nbsp;</span></div><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />I hope that you will have the opportunity to try some of these… I will certainly be wearing these and others to get me through the colder months! ;)</span></div><div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />Enjoy and happy sniffing! :)</span></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-53496733234236586132016-10-31T17:56:00.000-07:002016-11-03T08:22:50.498-07:00Be A Perfume Marvel! Some Tips On How To Wear Your Perfume According To Season, And Make It Last Longer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">According to Coco Chanel, fragrance should be applied to places on the body, where you would like to be kissed.&nbsp; I’ll leave that to your imagination of what she meant, but there are certain parts of the body which many of us neglect when applying perfume and how it’s application affects the projection of the fragrance.&nbsp; Many would be surprised to know that the way you apply perfume on your body actually changes with the seasons!&nbsp; So just as you like to change your wardrobe for mainly the summer and the winter seasons, this is the case also for your fragrances.&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wqwgQrDyvFQ/WBfnZcZfzMI/AAAAAAAAHaI/-dmjiX68thEwlkbKbHGJkrBdozLC_uTewCLcB/s1600/Luscious-scented-hair.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wqwgQrDyvFQ/WBfnZcZfzMI/AAAAAAAAHaI/-dmjiX68thEwlkbKbHGJkrBdozLC_uTewCLcB/s320/Luscious-scented-hair.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">During the heat of the summer months, the heat rises up the body and this gives us an indication of where we should apply fragrances on our body to achieve great longevity.&nbsp; During the summer months, applying fragrances to your usual upper body hotspots give you that immediate effect, and this includes the hair.&nbsp; However, it is wise to be careful when applying perfume to your hair, due to the alcohol content of sprays which can be harmful due to its drying effects on hair.&nbsp; But of course, none of this matters if you are using my beloved bakhoor!&nbsp; That beautifully deliciously Arabian incense-type fragrance that is burned for its sillage and smoke is used to cover the whole body, clothing and hair in the smoke and to literally drown yourself in the incense… an utterly wonderful experience!&nbsp; If using perfume sprays on your hair however, do so sparingly, and spray the perfume into a hair brush before brushing your hair.&nbsp; This allows the alcohol to disperse and the fragrance to be spread evenly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Apart from your hair, other upper body areas where you should spray, include of course the pulse points, which are located behind your ears, giving that immediate affect. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Do you want your favourite perfume to become a part of you, but not to give you and others surrounding you, that continuous olfactive fatigue?&nbsp; Well, instead of spraying the perfume around your neckline as most of us do, pull your top open from the back at the neck and spray down your back in between the area of your skin and your top.&nbsp; This will give you that aura of the fragrance clinging to you, enveloping you and being a part of you, without it being in your <i>face </i>and the face of others that you interact with.&nbsp; The remaining upper body areas we have, is the inner elbow area, as opposed to your wrist, and again gives you that wonderful immediate affect from your fragrance.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Being more relevant to the summer months, is the need to spray behind the knees – as touched on earlier about the heat rising up your body, as oppose to the opposite, spraying your scent of the day behind your knees means that in the time it takes for the heat to rise, that part of your body is giving off those wonderful perfume notes, in collaboration with them coming off the parts sprayed on your upper body.&nbsp; The knees are also a pulse point, making it the perfect lower body part of the body to spray.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SPjfSAJrpOM/WBfnqqKDrWI/AAAAAAAAHaM/5qWWc3koBs4fEInkEsJi4Zx1leP50O6bgCLcB/s1600/anouk%2Baimee%2Bwearing%2Bsable%2Bcoat%2Bby%2Bbert%2Bstern%2B1960s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SPjfSAJrpOM/WBfnqqKDrWI/AAAAAAAAHaM/5qWWc3koBs4fEInkEsJi4Zx1leP50O6bgCLcB/s320/anouk%2Baimee%2Bwearing%2Bsable%2Bcoat%2Bby%2Bbert%2Bstern%2B1960s.jpg" width="310" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">That’s the summer covered, but what about the winter months?&nbsp; Well, it’s easy enough!&nbsp; Winter means wrapping up warm, with those high neck tops and winter fur jackets, knees high boots and our arms covered in thick long sleeved sweats, and wrists in gloves.&nbsp; All this wrapping up helps the body to keep in the heat generated by the body, meaning that our fragrances will have better longevity on our skin, but will not be able to project as much due to the layers of clothing.&nbsp; Instead this is a perfect time to think about perfuming the layers of clothing that we wear, to achieve something that works like projection from the skin.&nbsp; This could be done by spraying the insides of our winter jackets with a nice warm spicy scent – to get the heat going, all the while having sprayed on your covered skin possibly a totally different fragrance, but a perfume that complements the one that you are wearing ‘outside’ on your clothes.&nbsp; Winter brings us a new concept in layering our favourite fragrances not on our skin, but through the layers of our clothing giving a totally new dimension and affect to how we wear fragrances.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Now for that hot cocoa, that spicy fragrance and then in front of the wood burner tonight?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Happy sniffing! :)</span><span style="line-height: 107%;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<span dir="RTL" lang="AR-SA"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-56406938418954375742016-10-26T17:46:00.003-07:002016-11-02T18:03:55.378-07:00You Are Unique! You are Special… And Your Perfume Thinks So Too! Is The Myth of How Your Body Chemistry Affects How Your Perfume Smells On Your Skin True?!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jy3z4BAEhAE/WBFN8ojfpyI/AAAAAAAAHW8/5DcpQTs9GIQP3OT8c8YnujXlJ2rSoKRHgCLcB/s1600/279579-f0d5578e-f407-11e2-86b2-db7941f3673f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jy3z4BAEhAE/WBFN8ojfpyI/AAAAAAAAHW8/5DcpQTs9GIQP3OT8c8YnujXlJ2rSoKRHgCLcB/s400/279579-f0d5578e-f407-11e2-86b2-db7941f3673f.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">We have all been there and done that. Been in the heat of the moment, when we are dealing with extreme hot weather and even with the opposite – absolutely freezing cold weathers! Our body temperatures rise up and down, of course affected by not only the weather, but also by how your body copes with it! When we throw fragrance into the equation, we start to see the magic! And what a delicious magic that is! Well, that depends…<br /><br />You have probably heard about how when perfumes are sprayed on your skin, what you smell is according to how it reacts with your body – but is there really any truth to that? Well, In fact… wait for it girls! If you tend to eat a higher fat diet, then fragrances on your skin will render a very powerful perfume experience, meaning that the notes will project powerfully, and possibly affect longevity on the skin! Well who knew? A great excuse to reach out for another doughnut or that chocolate bar… ;)<br /><br /> </span><br /><div><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f5GnRoyLibo/WBFOF69x9LI/AAAAAAAAHXA/JZ8ia6ab958ls2RjmQtctxoM5RDaH0ANwCLcB/s1600/perfume.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="390" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f5GnRoyLibo/WBFOF69x9LI/AAAAAAAAHXA/JZ8ia6ab958ls2RjmQtctxoM5RDaH0ANwCLcB/s400/perfume.jpg" width="400" /></span></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">But its not just those of us who like a full fat latte that have the advantage of the very much welcome assault on our nose, it is also those with oily skin who get a lot of intensity from their perfumes, and possibly benefit from great longevity too. But surprisingly, although this may seem to be a good thing, in fact, this is not how fragrances are meant to perform. Fragrances are meant to be intimate and personal – an extension of our personalities and our individuality. Its our unwritten signature. And this is why, if Tom, Dick or Harry can smell that scent you sprayed on your arm at that perfume counter earlier on this afternoon, when they are standing at arms length from you – then you are either wearing your perfume incorrectly, or the fragrance is not adapting to your personal body chemistry. And also remember, that when trying out various different fragrances at that fragrance counter, there is no use in using those strips of paper those sales people like to ram down our throats, or even smell directly from the bottle! You will miss out on the whole essence of the fragrance and most importantly – how it smells on you. But remember that because of the confusion and the scented overload that you will be sending to your brain, during those exciting department store fragrance counter visits, spray no more than three different fragrances on your skin, otherwise any more than that and your brain will not be able to correctly process it. <br /><br /> <br /><br />But what about the favourite fragrance that you bought only a few months ago, and now it suddenly smells completely different? Well again, that’s all down to your body chemistry and the changes that your body has been through. Changed your diet recently? Decided to cut those carbs? Or are you more stressed? Strangely, even stress and anxiety can affect how your favourite perfume smells on your skin, because it’s all about the heart! Your heart reacts to stressful situations, and the pulse points of body, which are connected to your heart is what perfumes rely on, when interpreting the notes of the fragrance on your particular skin. Failing that, you could just kill two birds with one stone and just reach out for that chocolate bar… because not only will it help to relieve your stress, but it would also make you smell good! ;)<br /><br />Happy Sniffing! <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> </span></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-61475522844923235522016-10-24T05:57:00.001-07:002016-10-24T07:32:55.706-07:00Kicking up a sandstorm in the desert! On being the official perfumer for a new brand bringing out a new affordable Luxury Arabian Fragrance Line: The Scented Souq!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zznskJR2Zxo/WA3-IfQQsTI/AAAAAAAAHVE/2BiunsEPbgUcfiTYgA9CLXgQrUvmpygkQCLcB/s1600/ScentedSouqLogoThickOutline.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zznskJR2Zxo/WA3-IfQQsTI/AAAAAAAAHVE/2BiunsEPbgUcfiTYgA9CLXgQrUvmpygkQCLcB/s320/ScentedSouqLogoThickOutline.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">So, its final!&nbsp; Overhauling the fine fragrance niche markets of the UK at least, and filling the gap in the Arabian Luxury fine fragrance UK market, for affordable Arabian fragrance! A small upcoming UK brand, The Scented Souq will be launching a small new fragrance oil line!&nbsp; And I will be behind designing the fragrances!! &nbsp;These fragrance oils will appeal to those who love oud, as well as those who do not!&nbsp;</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Scented Souq is a British based venture with an Arabian heritage, bringing very high quality Arabian fragrance oils to the UK fragrance market.&nbsp; The difference here is, that they are hand blended fragrance oils, using the highest quality of ingredients that are reminiscent of bygone eras and times, conjuring up those nostalgic feelings – and most importantly, bringing fine perfume and niche fragrance all the way back to their roots!&nbsp; The collection will appeal to all oud and non-oud lovers, with choices of non-oud based fragrance oils, bringing on the feeling of being in divine fragranced heaven!&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ju1PKoIB5tA/WA4EX1_Qv8I/AAAAAAAAHVU/k4QCwvGYNVM2SzutVxXAwThEKeOaLWAcgCLcB/s1600/IMG_20161024_132907.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ju1PKoIB5tA/WA4EX1_Qv8I/AAAAAAAAHVU/k4QCwvGYNVM2SzutVxXAwThEKeOaLWAcgCLcB/s320/IMG_20161024_132907.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">These fragrance oils will be a fantastic take on the high-end oud based fragrances – but at affordable prices and in time for the holiday season!&nbsp; Feedback from my sample drive that I did last week was wonderfully successful – with the not officially released yet ‘The Sahara’ and released ‘The Scent of Heaven’ having excellent feedback from testers, but wait!&nbsp; There is more to come, with at least three or four more delicious fragrance oils lined up!&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">But the fun does not just stop at the fragrance oils!&nbsp; There are also plans to have hand soap versions, as well as shower gel versions of the fragrance, making them fantastic gifts for the coming Christmas season!&nbsp; And what better way to stir up the Christmas spirit than with Middle Eastern inspired fragrance oils?!&nbsp; That’s the Christmas spirit right there!&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">More information about the forthcoming fragrance attar oils and gift sets will be available shortly, but in the meantime, are you willing to be a tester and to receive some samples?&nbsp; All we ask is that you pay postage and packing and samples can be sent to North America, UK, and mainland Europe.&nbsp; Interested in some <span style="line-height: 107%;">samples</span>?&nbsp; Email me with details of your favourite fragrances of ANY brand or house – and I will update you when the new samples are available :)&nbsp;&nbsp;in the meantime – check out what is available NOW on <a href="http://thescentedsouq.blogspot.co.uk/">The Scented Souq</a>!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Watch this space!&nbsp; And Happy Sniffing :)</span><o:p></o:p></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-90154989316323678962016-10-19T14:13:00.000-07:002016-10-19T14:13:27.283-07:00HOT NEW FRAGRANCE RELEASES…FREE SAMPLES! Affordable Luxury Arabian Fragrances Coming soon <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kg8v-K2HaHI/WAfgm-G5exI/AAAAAAAAHUE/zCxVMGD1108Wx4YXfE-k_oNRzx5L6KNigCLcB/s1600/IMG_20161019_162750.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kg8v-K2HaHI/WAfgm-G5exI/AAAAAAAAHUE/zCxVMGD1108Wx4YXfE-k_oNRzx5L6KNigCLcB/s320/IMG_20161019_162750.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.thescentedsouq.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">The ScentedSouq</a> will be releasing their new greatly anticipated fragrances, in the next few months!&nbsp; Coming in just before the holiday period, this would mean that they will be up for grabs just before Christmas!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There will be an addition of four new fragrances to grace the world with, one of them being The Sahara, a wonderfully beautiful fragrance set to be released this coming week.&nbsp; This fragrance brings back that nostalgic feeling of the hot desert, with the sun beaming brightly whilst the notes of spices are being carried in the air towards you from the woman preparing her mildly spiced tea some miles away down behind the desert dunes.&nbsp; The honey and jasmine intermingle so wonderfully intertwined together, with a rare dash of greenery in the desert coming in from the vetiver, oakmoss and sage.&nbsp; The saffron does not make an obvious show, but performs wonderfully providing lift and boldness in the background being the supporting actor to the main actors of Taif rose, amber and the delicately crispy musk.&nbsp; The desperate need of quenching our thirst hits us in the heat of The Sahara, with the cedarwood showing a brief display with freshness to cool us down, alongside the appearances of the aphrodisiac-y ylang ylang, before settling down on the earthy patchouli.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TzbpHQ3x_QI/WAfg9OqHA5I/AAAAAAAAHUI/F2_w-SUlmmoBAngPuWBz8xUGewtSbZWwgCLcB/s1600/20161018_120504.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TzbpHQ3x_QI/WAfg9OqHA5I/AAAAAAAAHUI/F2_w-SUlmmoBAngPuWBz8xUGewtSbZWwgCLcB/s320/20161018_120504.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All the other fragrance oils that are set to be released are currently having their names under wraps!&nbsp; But watch this space to keep updated with those new releases!&nbsp; The Sahara will be accompanied by the current bestselling fragrance oil, The Scent of Heaven, which was its original name before become <i>Mukhallat Taifi, </i>but now referred back to its original name due to demand!&nbsp; The Scent of Heaven is a very authentic take on the traditional Arabian Attar.&nbsp; Those are the notes that we smell in the air surrounding the mosques during <i>Eid </i>prayers, and the notes that we smell when hustling through the many narrow lanes and the souqs of <i>Arabia </i>– it is the fragrance that will take you back to <i>that </i>place, it is the fragrance that will make you feel nostalgic and will seem familiar, just like our souls yearn of the familiar scent of heaven.&nbsp; It is available <a href="http://thescentedsouq.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">here</a>.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YpJG30mjLpA/WAfhRfznLGI/AAAAAAAAHUM/pvEIR7LqYkYGq0XcUvg60P4m30uzRU_ZQCLcB/s1600/20161018_120653.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YpJG30mjLpA/WAfhRfznLGI/AAAAAAAAHUM/pvEIR7LqYkYGq0XcUvg60P4m30uzRU_ZQCLcB/s320/20161018_120653.jpg" width="180" /></span></a><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Want to sign up for some FREE SAMPLES of new fragrance releases from The Scented Souq?&nbsp; Well, you are in luck!&nbsp; I will have a limited number of free samples of The Sahara available for those in the UK, Europe and North America, with only postage and packing to pay!&nbsp; Fancy one?&nbsp; Email me at <a href="mailto:shaneela@shaneela.co.uk">shaneela@shaneela.co.uk</a> and tell me what your favourite fragrances are – of ANY brand, and whether you like Oud or not.&nbsp; Get those emails in NOW! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Happy Sniffing! :)</span></span></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-34800514446212073372016-10-17T14:37:00.000-07:002016-10-17T14:38:44.274-07:00Review: From the Fragrance Powerhouses of Arabia, Mera Gold and Attar Al Sheila<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Arabian Oud, of course seen as the brand which presents itself as the epiphany of Arabian Luxury and a leader in Arabian niche fragrance – at least internationally, came in with Mera Gold and Mera Silver, back in 2014.&nbsp; What can I say!&nbsp; Being one of the top of my list of favourites, it is a very summery and citrusy fine concoction on first whiff.&nbsp; I get the sense that I am walking down the boulevards of Andalucía with its dangling beautiful ornamental citrus fruits of fully ripe lemons and bitter oranges hanging from the branches of the trees perfuming the mildly heated air.&nbsp; Then we have the wonderful depth of bergamot populating the citrus scented air with the dancing notes of the jasmine and honey-like orange blossom, rounding off the set of top notes.&nbsp; The fantastically rich jasmine notes make an appearance, bringing us home down to the musty warmth of patchouli, before settling on the familiarly dense base of Musk and vanilla… what a journey!!&nbsp; Mera Gold is one of the most beautiful fragrances produced by renowned fragrance house, Arabian Oud and of course in my opinion, it is the shining star when compared to its sister fragrance Mera Silver, which of course has its own fabulous qualities!&nbsp; &nbsp;<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6aMN3XQQrfA/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6aMN3XQQrfA?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FbeagRDLf1o/WAVDrC71kOI/AAAAAAAAHTs/iG4l7oUvSnUTUr4yzqv2a2-U3QF7bUF7gCLcB/s1600/57564_8bi8gr_attar_al_sheila_480.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FbeagRDLf1o/WAVDrC71kOI/AAAAAAAAHTs/iG4l7oUvSnUTUr4yzqv2a2-U3QF7bUF7gCLcB/s320/57564_8bi8gr_attar_al_sheila_480.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Moving on to another powerhouse of Middle Eastern brands, Swiss Arabian’s Attar Al Sheila fragrance was nominated for the category of ‘Arabian popular appeal’ for female fragrances in the FIFI Awards of Arabia 2013 – and it’s easy to see why! &nbsp;Mingling top notes of honeysuckle, violet and freesia, gives a powerful floral bouquet opening – but not too powerful, that we do not sense the ever persistent dominant note of the heart of the fragrance – rose, mingled with Jasmine and Magnolia…. Bliss!&nbsp; This gives the perfume that aura of the <i>fragrance niche </i>standing out boldly from the rest, but then it gets even better! &nbsp;The light-not too heavy woody rosewood notes start to open up to bear its soul quite loudly… whilst being punctuated with an ever so slight citrusy note, before we come to the denser leather, mingled with patchouli and vanilla… this scent is a gem for those loving deep base notes, a wonderful scent for this Autumn and a fantastic alternative for those who love Arabian attar, but in a spray.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: large;">&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;</span><o:p></o:p></div></div>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318328546008737403.post-38619259070338106182016-10-13T06:57:00.002-07:002016-10-16T20:08:02.221-07:00Feeling Fruity? Floral maybe? Or Are You A Woody Kinda Girl, or A Spicy Type of Man? Find Your Own Fragrance Heaven!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QMMPsHdIGSQ/V_-SqDDuTuI/AAAAAAAAHSo/WUZArP9MSFATERfMOJFWiFTlazlsxxeDACLcB/s1600/20161013_145329.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QMMPsHdIGSQ/V_-SqDDuTuI/AAAAAAAAHSo/WUZArP9MSFATERfMOJFWiFTlazlsxxeDACLcB/s320/20161013_145329.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif;">We have all experienced that feeling!&nbsp; You are lured into those wonderful smelling department store fragrance counters, or the shopping malls that have whiffs of vanilla mixed with jasmine in the air about them with sales assistants begging you to smell that latest new craze of a perfume.&nbsp; Heck, not only is this limited to department stores or shopping malls – even grocery stores, and bakeries are in on the act!&nbsp; That air and smell of freshly baked bread, or the smell of cookie dough and apple pies baking in the oven… Complemented by that luring smell of those freshly ground coffee beans, coming from the supermarket or grocery store in house-coffee house, coupled with the adjacent juice bar, with that freshly squeezed smell of oranges dancing in the air with those coffee notes, or was that strawberry?&nbsp; No wait, they are making banana and strawberry smoothies!&nbsp; Ah that smell! In actual fact, a lot of these smells are manufactured fragrances that are sprayed into the air, to help lure in customers to buy their 2 hour-earlier cooked not-smelling fresh anymore bread.&nbsp; It’s the scent that allows us to have that <i>feel good </i>feeling and is the scent of association.&nbsp; But, we were all built with our own <i>nose </i>and own tastes in fragrances, that help us to determine not only our own individuality and identity, but also our own personality.&nbsp;</span></span><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif;">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">And this is where the different fragrance categories come in!&nbsp; When standing at the fragrance counter, with that notorious strip of paper at hand forced on us by the sales man, sprayed with the latest Gucci or Tom Fords of the day, in actual fact, the smell of the fragrance on the piece of paper will smell completely different on your skin.&nbsp; But without going into a chemistry lesson, what helps us determine the type of fragrances that we individually <i>like </i>can be determined through the various categories of fragrance and it is through these that we are able to use fragrance to assert our identity, build our tastes and personality.&nbsp; Here is</span><span style="line-height: 107%;"> a brief overview of some fragrance categories:<br /><o:p></o:p></span></span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">&nbsp;</span>&nbsp;</span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , &quot;helvetica&quot; , sans-serif;">This first table consists of fragrances that have been popular with some formulated at the turn on the 19th Century and others, like woody scents, much earlier. Although they are very traditional, they are still very much used as bases for modern fine fragrances</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><table align="left" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: 6.75pt; margin-right: 6.75pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-table-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-table-anchor-vertical: page; mso-table-left: center; mso-table-lspace: 9.0pt; mso-table-rspace: 9.0pt; mso-table-top: 148.6pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; width: 680px;"> <tbody><tr> <td style="border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 171.8pt;" valign="top" width="229"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Category<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-left: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 338.55pt;" valign="top" width="451"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Description<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="border-top: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 171.8pt;" valign="top" width="229"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Soliflore<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-bottom: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-left: none; border-right: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-top: none; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 338.55pt;" valign="top" width="451"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">‘Soliflore’ is a French word to describe a perfume that usually consists of one fragrance from one flower and examples include Jasmine and Lilly of the valley<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="border-top: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 171.8pt;" valign="top" width="229"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Floral<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-bottom: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-left: none; border-right: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-top: none; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 338.55pt;" valign="top" width="451"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">These are fragrances that are very popular and they consist of scents from various different flowers, including roses, lavender, lilies, lotuses and many others.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="border-top: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 171.8pt;" valign="top" width="229"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Woody<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-bottom: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-left: none; border-right: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-top: none; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 338.55pt;" valign="top" width="451"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">These includes the ancient fragrances of Arabian and Indian trade routes.&nbsp; They usually consist of the ambers, the ouds, the dark musk’s, frankincense and the sandalwoods.&nbsp; These fragrances are regularly complemented by the wonderful spicier scents, below<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="border-top: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 171.8pt;" valign="top" width="229"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Orientals<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-bottom: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-left: none; border-right: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-top: none; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 338.55pt;" valign="top" width="451"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Beautifully complementing the woodier bases, we have these wonderful notes of saffron, cinnamon, pepper, cloves and many others.&nbsp; Alongside their woody sister, these were a heavily used fragrance bases by the royalties of Moughal India and the Persians.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="border-top: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 171.8pt;" valign="top" width="229"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Fougère<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-bottom: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-left: none; border-right: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-top: none; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 338.55pt;" valign="top" width="451"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">This French word, pronounced <i>fouzair </i>is a type of fragrance that is a fine blend of coumarin, Oakmoss and lavender and over time, some other compounds were added to it, including spicier fragrances and herbs. <i><o:p></o:p></i></span></span></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="border-top: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 171.8pt;" valign="top" width="229"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Chypre<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-bottom: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-left: none; border-right: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-top: none; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 338.55pt;" valign="top" width="451"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: page; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-left: center; mso-element-top: 148.6pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly; mso-line-height-alt: 13.2pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">This is the French word for <i>Cyprus </i>falling into the Woody category.&nbsp; This is a base fragrance, consisting of oakmoss, patchouli, bergamont, labdanum and of course over time, this has included others such as Musk.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">&nbsp;</span><br /><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;">These below are modern fragrance types, which sometimes are an adaptation of traditional fragrance types, adding a modern twist to them:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><table align="left" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; margin-left: 6.75pt; margin-right: 6.75pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-table-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-table-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-table-left: left; mso-table-lspace: 9.0pt; mso-table-rspace: 9.0pt; mso-table-top: 67.5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;"> <tbody><tr> <td style="border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 225.4pt;" valign="top" width="301"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-top: 67.5pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Citrus<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-left: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 225.4pt;" valign="top" width="301"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-top: 67.5pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">These consist of the lemons, grapefruits, limes and are complemented usually with herbs, such as bergamont or gourmand type notes such as honey or even woody notes, such as sandalwood<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="border-top: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 225.4pt;" valign="top" width="301"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-top: 67.5pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Green<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-bottom: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-left: none; border-right: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-top: none; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 225.4pt;" valign="top" width="301"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-top: 67.5pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">These are fragrant basils, coriander, patchouli and even the scent of freshly cut grass – which many love!&nbsp; These blend wonderfully with the citrus types of fragrances.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> </tr><tr> <td style="border-top: none; border: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 225.4pt;" valign="top" width="301"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-top: 67.5pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Gourmand<o:p></o:p></span></span></div></td> <td style="border-bottom: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-left: none; border-right: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; border-top: none; mso-border-left-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; mso-border-top-alt: double #E6C7E7 1.5pt; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 225.4pt;" valign="top" width="301"><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-element-anchor-horizontal: margin; mso-element-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-element-frame-hspace: 9.0pt; mso-element-top: 67.5pt; mso-element-wrap: around; mso-element: frame; mso-height-rule: exactly;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Ever smelled something that you want to eat?&nbsp; Well, these are not edible, but imagine wonderful fragrances with notes of dark coffee, chocolate, honey, and maybe a tinge of vanilla.&nbsp; These are called <i>Gourmand </i>fragrances and mix well with most other categories</span></span></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Now armed with this information about the different fragrance categories, you will find yourself being more acquainted with the different fragrance notes in your favourite perfume or only just realise what hits the note for you!&nbsp; Fragrance really helps us to define our identity and how other perceive us… you may want to find <i>that </i>special fragrance that everyone remembers you by, or find that fragrance that someone close to you smelled like.&nbsp; So, what are your favourite categories of fragrance type?&nbsp; Maybe just another trip to the perfume counter will help…<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-family: &quot;arial&quot; , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Happy Sniffing! &nbsp;</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;wingdings&quot;;">;)</span></span></span><br /><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;wingdings&quot;;"><br /></span></span></span><span style="color: #ead1dc;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: &quot;wingdings&quot;;"><br /></span></span></span></div></div> <a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/18291617/?claim=tyyr83jfemp">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>Shaneela Rowah Al-Qamarhttps://plus.google.com/103932244932623704848noreply@blogger.com0